Atau Tanaka

Composer, multi media performer and developer of musical human computer interfaces, was born 1963 in Tokyo and raised in the U.S.. He studied in the studios of Harvard University, Peabody Conservatory, Stanford University's Center for Computer Research in Music & Acoustics (CCRMA). In 1992 he moved to Paris for a residency at the Cité des Arts, conducting research at l'Institut de Recherche et Coordination Acoustique/Musique (IRCAM). In Europe, he has been artist in residence at STEIM (Amsterdam), V2 (Rotterdam) and was Artistic Ambassador for interactive music technologies at Apple Computer Europe. He moved to Tokyo in 1997 for a residency at NTT/ICC (InterCommunications Center).

Since 1998 Tanaka had been teaching music and media art at several Japanese universities, recently at Chukyo University/Nagoya. In 2001 he moved back to Paris.

A central topic of his work are sensor instruments. His BioMuse is a neural-musical interface, which transmits signals of muscle tension into sound. He has recorded and performed it with the trio Sensorband. Another focus of his compositional work are, since the mid-90s, multi media projects using the digital networks. Tanakas work has been awarded the GMD/WDR Cyberstar prize for his Internet installation "Global String" (Première Rotterdam 2000) and the Fraunhofer Society Media Art prize for his auditory network project "Aural Appropriation" (2000).

Articles

• Creating the Virtual Performer. Atau Tanaka in Conversation with Sabine Breitsameter. February 2002. http://www.swr.de/swr2/audiohyperspace/engl_version/interview/tanaka.html

http://www.sensorband.com/atau