Tech 29 Nov 2005 01:42 pm
Computer music
It is a little known fact that the first computer used to play music in world was the Australian-built CSIRAC (initially know as CSIR Mk1), in 1951. The computer was then in Sydney; after it was moved to Melbourne (in 1955), mathematician Thomas Cherry (after whom a building in the University of Melbourne was named) developed a system that allowed the use of musical notation to program the pieces to be played.
Earlier today, The Music of CSIRAC, a book telling the story of these first experiments, was launched in Melbourne. The book comes with a CD containing 16 pieces played by CSIRAC. It is a great book for anyone interested in computer history; it can be ordered online from the publisher or from Amazon.com.
