MacFormat 1999 May/macformat-076.iso/Demos/Koan Pro Demo/Read Me - Generic Information

Text File | 1998-09-29 | 29.9 KB | 634 lines | [TEXT/ttxt]

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README.TXT for SSEYO Koan Pro V2.1                           1st October 1998
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Note - SSEYO Koan Pro and the accompanying information are copyright materials
       of SSEYO Ltd. Be sure that you agree to the license terms that
       accompany this product, before using the software !
=============================================================================

=============================================================================
Quick Start:
=============================================================================

Please refer to the online help for "Quick Start" information and tutorials !

***********************************************************************
* PLEASE tell your friends, and help spread the word about Koan Pro ! *
***********************************************************************

=============================================================================
What's new in SSEYO Koan Pro V2.0 ?
=============================================================================

Please refer to the on-line help for a complete list of the features added to
SSEYO Koan Pro V2.0 since the V1.2 release ! (The short answer is - lots !)

- More than 60 new parameters have been added since version 1.2 !
- SSEYO Koan Pro V2.0 introduced the Listening Voice voice type.  The purpose of
  this, is to allow you to use SSEYO Koan Pro as a hyper-instrument or to treat
  external MIDI feeds with live sound or musical effects, chords etc. - SSEYO
  Koan Pro V2.0 is the perfect addition to a sequencer!!
- There is full cross- compatibility with SSEYO Koan X ; SKD and SKT files are
  fully inter-changeable!
- The Record Dialog now lets you optionally record WAV files in addition to
  MIDI files !
- The Pattern Editor has been totally revised, and we have introduced a number
  of sophisticated pattern enhancements, including:
    Pattern sequencing
    Forced frequency patterns (for recycled SoundFont breakbeats)
- Following Voices can now follow other following voices !
- Auto Chording - Now any voice type can now play chords, including block
  chords, generative arpeggios, etc. !
- Randomization and Mutation - You can easily create entire random pieces,
  voices and / or rules ! Individual parameters, parameter groups and entire
  voices can also be mutated and randomized.  Mutation is a great addition for
  easy creation of variants in the Pattern Editor.
- Full Yamaha XG and Extended SCC1 Support, which even lets you use the full
  range of XG patches !
- User Microcontrollers - SSEYO Koan Pro V2.0 gives you the facility to use
  custom MIDI commands and User controllers, for expandable filter sweep and
  other effects, including customizable MIDI books for expandable soundcard
  feature support. Additionally, both the Piece and each Voice may have
  specific MIDI initialization commands associated with them. See how to use
  user configurable MIDI Books.
- SoundFont Loading can now be defined at the Voice level !
- Any "off" values are now shaded-out to grey, to make "on" values more
  noticeable.
- In order to reduce file download sizes, SSEYO Koan Web Platinum is no longer
  part of the Internet-based SSEYO Koan Pro product - instead, why not
  download the free SSEYO Koan Web Silver from our web site!
- More templates, top quality example files and hot tips!
- Many, many miscellaneous changes, fixes and features.

=============================================================================
Late-breaking features in version 2.01
=============================================================================

There have been some late-breaking features that we have added to Koan Pro
2.01, that have not yet appeared in the manual or help system :
* In the pattern editor, you can now drag across velocities (rather than just
  modifying one note velocity at a time), by holding-down the SHIFT key as you
  drag the cursor across the velocity area.
* We have added menu options to select different pattern editor modes
  automatically (Menu : Groups | Pattern Editor by Type)
* We have added a new button to the pattern editor toolbar, which power-users
  can press to invoke the pattern text string editor.
* The display now automatically re-scales itself to match different screen
  resolutions : remember that you can change your default Koan Pro row
  height through using the Preferences dialog (Menu : Options | Preferences,
  and "Set default row height" which has a default value of 18).
* You no longer have to press Control-Enter to get new lines in the Piece
  Notes or Voice Notes dialogs : just pressing the Enter key on it's own will
  now have the same effect.
* If you enter an illegal value in the randomization options dialog, you are
  now told what the valid range of values is.
* Note that in the piece notes window, the PATH field is shown for your
  information only - you are not able to change the shown value.

=============================================================================
16 bit/32 bit versions
=============================================================================

The 32 bit version of Koan Pro supports a multi-threaded composer, which can
be enabled through the Setup Dialog (View Setup off the menu). This option
enables Koan to keep on composing, even when the graphical user interface is
fully engaged by the user. Previously, if the user interface were stopped
while waiting for user input, the music could stop being played after the
Composer Reaction time (View Setup) had elapsed.  If you enable the
multi-threading option, and later experience problems with multi-threaded
operation, you may of course disable (and later re-enable) this option through
the Setup Dialog.

The most likely problem with multithreading is that you might experience some
lack of smoothness in the played music, when you have a small amount of
physical memory available (e.g. less than 16 Megabytes of base physical
memory, and / or many applications loaded).  If this is the case, simply
disable the multithreading option.  Multithreading is generally more efficient
on Windows NT 4, than on Windows 95.

The 32 bit version is designed for use with either Windows 95 or Windows NT 4,
or later.

=============================================================================
Documentation:
=============================================================================

If you purchased this product electronically, then please refer to the online
help for all documentation !

=============================================================================
Users upgrading from earlier versions of SSEYO Koan Pro
=============================================================================

Users upgrading from earlier versions of SSEYO Koan Pro, might like to review
their list of templates, available when you create a new piece.  You will need
to select the templates you wish to see by selecting File, Create Template
List from the menu. XG users will no doubt want to try the XG template !

=============================================================================
Users with one of the demo products
=============================================================================

Should your demo version not include various SoundFont banks, you can download
these and other demo files from our Website ! Unzip the contents of the demo
soundfont zip file into your EXAMPLES subdirectory.

=============================================================================
Users with SSEYO Koan X Gold or Platinum, 16-bit version
=============================================================================

If you have a version of SSEYO Koan X Gold or Platinum, 16-bit, where the
version of the SKME is 2.02 or earlier (check Help | About from Koan X), you
will want to update your copy of the file SKME3.DLL, using the one that is
copied to your Koan Pro installation directory.  Simply use Explorer to replace
your existing Koan X SKME3.DLL file with the new SKME3.DLL file that comes with
your Koan Pro V2.1 installation (which features SKME version V2.10).

=============================================================================
Support:
=============================================================================

SSEYO Koan Pro Demo is not supported by SSEYO - try the Internet newsgroup
comp.music.midi if you have any questions, there is bound to be some friendly
Koan Pro user who can help you !

SSEYO Koan Pro full-version users should refer to the on-line help for
information on how to obtain support.

Please remember, we encourage anybody who wants to talk about Koan software
or music on the Internet, to join in the open discussions in comp.music.midi !
Come along, and look for messages with the word "Koan" somewhere in the
subject title ... see you all on-line !

=============================================================================
Gravis Ultrasound (and possibly other patch caching cards):
=============================================================================

The modulation controller has no effect on MIDI line 10.  We have had to
disable this controller to avoid historical problems in the Ultrasound
drivers.

Reverb and Chorus are not supported by some soundcards.

=============================================================================
Cannot find MSACM.DLL ?
=============================================================================

If when using Koan Pro 16-bit on Windows NT (or some other version of Windows)
when attempting to do a WAV to record a WAV file, you get an error like "Cannot
find MSACM.DLL", then just do either one of the following to fix your
problem :

1. Find msacm.dll on your system (e.g. under c:\winnt\system32), and copy
   it into the directory in which you have installed Koan Pro.
2. Modify your system path, such that msacm.dll is found by Koan Pro.

=============================================================================
Late-breaking tips ...
=============================================================================

Q. When using velocity envelopes to control the entrance of a part I can
   still hear the part (faint but intrusive), even when all 4 velocity
   envelopes are zeroed. Is this the card or Koan?

A. This is because you have still got a VELOCITY RANGE envelope defined !
   To stop this effect, simply set the velocity range envelope to "zero" for
   the period when you want to hear nothing !

=============================================================================
Example files
=============================================================================

Look in the EXAMPLES subdirectory / folder under your SSEYO Koan Pro
installation (e.g. C:\KOANPRO\EXAMPLES) to find the example files that come
with SSEYO Koan Pro.

The SoundFont file 70S115.SF2 is supplied courtesy of Zero G Limited, through
Time and Space Limited.  For contact details please refer to the soundfont
bank itself, using the Vienna SoundFont editing tool (use File | Information).

The following pieces are not documented, but contain very useful
examples of advanced usages of following and listening voices:

FOLLDEM1.SKD - Follows voice demo illustrating follow up/down voices
FOLLDEM2.SKD - Follows voice demo illustrating follow up/down voices
LISTDEM1.SKD - Short phrase listening voice demo - play note with MIDI keyboard
LISTDEM2.SKD - Long phrase listening voice demo - play note with MIDI keyboard
LISTDEM3.SKD - SoundFont listening voice demo - play note with MIDI keyboard
LISTDEM4.SKD - 2 part control listening voice demo - play note with MIDI keyboard

=============================================================================
Midi Book files
=============================================================================

Look in the MIDIBOOK subdirectory / folder under your SSEYO Koan Pro
installation (e.g. C:\KOANPRO\MIDIBOOK) to find the Midi Book files that come
with SSEYO Koan Pro.
=============================================================================
What's new in the 1st October 1998 Release ?
=============================================================================

The 1st October 1998 release marks the release of Koan Pro 2.1 for the Power
Macintosh !

=============================================================================
What's new in the 31st August 1998 Release ?
=============================================================================

* The Interactive Koan Music Control is now released at V5.0 !
  IKMC V5.0 ties-in with the incredible SSEYO SKimmer portal :

    http://www.sseyo.com/skimmer/skimmer.html

* All SSEYO products now include built-in SoundFont support for SBLive cards !
  This is true for SSEYO Koan Music Engine (SKME) version 2.21.1 and later.

* There are now even more top-quality Koan template packs for Koan X, Koan Pro
  and the IKMC : all available from the SSEYO website.

  At time of writing, our template pack range now includes :
    AWE Pack #1
    AWE Pack #2
    AWE Pack #3
    Lo-Fi Disparates #1     [SoundFont - NEW !]
    Lo-Fi Disparates #2     [SoundFont - NEW !]
    Lo-Fi Disparates #3     [SoundFont - NEW !]
    Lo-Fi Disparates #4     [SoundFont - NEW !]
    Lo-Fi Disparates #5     [SoundFont - NEW !]
    Lo-Fi Disparates #6     [SoundFont - NEW !]
    Hammond Pack #1         [SoundFont - NEW !]
    Morphing Drum'n'Bass #1 [SoundFont - NEW !]
    SoundFont Guitar #1     [SoundFont - NEW !]
    SoundFont Guitar #2     [SoundFont - NEW !]
    Terratec Pack #1
    XG Pack #1

  More template packs are to come soon - watch the SSEYO web site for details !

=============================================================================
What's new in the V2.1 release - January 1998 ?
=============================================================================

* As of the end of January 1998, SSEYO have released a revision of it's entire
  range of authoring tools and playback software :

  SSEYO Koan Music Engine (SKME)              : 2.10 (was 2.01)
  SSEYO Koan Pro                              : 2.10 (was 2.01)
  SSEYO Koan Web                              : 2.10 (was 2.01)
  SSEYO Koan X                                : 1.10 (was 1.01)
  SSEYO Interactive Koan Music Control (IKMC) : 4.10 (was 4.06)
  SSEYO Koan Album Editor                     : 2.10 (was 1.40)
    [Note : the Album Editor is contained within Koan Web Platinum]

  We're calling this the "V2.1" release, though Koan X and the IKMC are
  actually numbered differently for historical reasons !

* The main feature of this release, is the incorporation of SSEYO's new
  "WAV Map" technology across our range of products : which adds advanced
  support for WAV-file based instruments to all our 32-bit products !
  SSEYO's new Koan "WAV Map" technology has many features and benefits :

  - You can now write Koan Music pieces that incorporate instruments based
    around small or large WAV files. For example, one small WAV recording of
    e.g. a guitar sound, can be used to generate an entire generative guitar.
    Koan automatically scales the frequency of the sample, to play your samples
    back using the full power of the SSEYO Koan Music Engine (SKME) !
  - If you write a piece to use only WAV-based instruments, then that piece
    will sound the same when played back on any PC with the appropriate Koan
    Music engine and Direct Sound 5 support, irrespective of soundcard !
  - This means that fast-downloading generative music publishing, with
    consistent playback on *any* PC soundcard, is now possible using the
    freely available IKMC pack !
  - You can mix and match MIDI, WAV and SoundFont based sounds together in the
    same piece - no problem.
  - Benefits of mixing-in the WAV stuff with MIDI, include the circumenting
    of any MIDI Line limits, and side-stepping any SoundFont sample memory
    limits (your WAV-based instruments are basically now limited by the
    physical memory capacity and raw performance of your PC).
  - We support the use of "recycled" breakbeats - played back from small
    WAV file fragments. Use Steingberg's "Recycle" or Square Circle's
    "Wave Surgeon" products to create these WAV files from larger recordings :
    and use Koan Pro to create the generative breakbeats patterns that will
    play-back consistently on any platform !
  - You can use our WAV-based instrument support with both our Auto-Chording and
    Koan ADSR features : Koan ADSR even works for auto-chording WAV-based
    instruments (something that could never be achieved with MIDI-based
    instruments) !
  - You can now record your playback sessions direct to WAV file, *even* when
    playing using WAV-based instruments (when using the appropriate Direct
    Sound 5 drivers) !
  - Minimum specification : Pentium P90 or better with Windows 95/NT4 or later,
    and Direct X 5 or later. If you do not have Direct X 5 installed, then
    the software will still work properly, but without advanced WAV Map
    playback.

  NOTE : To be able to use the Wave file-based instruments, do please
  ensure that you are using a MIDI Output device (see the Setup dialogs)
  that does not use any Software Synth component - these often have
  un-cooperative DirectSound usage, which would prevent you getting any
  Wave file-based output !  We recommend that you use any pure-MIDI
  output device e.g.  "AWE64G Midi Synth" ...  selecting "MIDI Mapper"
  (the default) or similar can occasionally catch you out.

* Most of our products now support MIDI play-along ! (all 32-bit and 16-bit
  products except for those "free" products that do not time-out : Koan Web
  Silver, IKMC Silver, and some special "bundle" editions of Koan X Silver)
  - You can set-up your MIDI keyboard (or other MIDI controller) to play-along
    with your currently playing piece : the music will harmonise with and
    adjust itself to what you are playing.
  - If your piece has been set-up using Koan Pro to use SSEYO's "Listening
    Voice" hyperinstrument capabilities, then you will be able to achieve a
    wide range of effects, including keyboard-splitting, auto-chording and
    following and more !

* Koan Pro now supports the same "easy-use" patch entry system as used in
  Koan X - this now makes SoundFont and WAV usage in Koan Pro a piece-of-cake !
  Both Koan X and Koan Pro patch-entry systems have now been expanded
  to support the new advanced WAV instrument support. Koan Pro still allows
  Koan Pro power-users to optionally edit Patch parameter strings by hand, for
  advanced effects such as assigning different WAV samples to different parts
  of a Voice's audio spectrum ("splitting the keyboard").

* Koan Web Platinum (32-bit version) now incorporates a native 32-bit Album
  Editor, with long filename support.

* Our first "Koan Essentials" template pack - Morphing Drum'n'Bass #1 by
  Tim Didymus - a joint release with Zero G - is a superb showcase for
  both our new WAV Map technology and our existing industry-leading SoundFont
  support. It incorporates 100 Koan X templates for use with Koan X Platinum :
  in both SoundFont and WAV-based formats. The pack includes more than 8
  megabytes of SoundFont samples, and more that 8 megabytes of WAV samples,
  letting you create amazing Drum'n'Bass generative dance music by simply
  dragging-and-dropping Koan templates. A special version of Koan X Silver
  ("ZG Edition") is included in the pack, to allow people without Koan X
  Platinum to get a taste for this fantastic new music-making technology !

* All our products now incorporate a very easy-to-use installer, with full
  uninstall capabilities. Web-based installation of our software is now a
  snip !

=============================================================================
To Come:
=============================================================================

Keep an eye on our web site (http://www.sseyo.com) for information on future
releases of Koan X Silver / Koan X Gold / Koan X Platinum ... as well as packs
of more hot new Koan templates for your copy of Koan X. More information in the
on-line Koan X help file !

=============================================================================
World Wide Web:
=============================================================================

Don't forget you can use SSEYO Koan Web, SSEYO Koan Plugin, or SSEYO Koan
Active X to play back Koan pieces. Koan Web is also suitable for use as as
helper applications for WWW browsers such as Navigator(TM), Internet Explorer
or Mosaic(TM). Create your own pieces with SSEYO Koan Pro and SSEYO Koan X
for use on the web.  See our web page for more details (http://www.sseyo.com).

We looking forward to your feedback on this exciting product, and we recommend
discussion in the Internet newsgroup comp.music.midi.

=============================================================================
Creative Labs AWE64 / AWE32 / SB32 owners :
=============================================================================

If you have the 32-bit version of one of the SSEYO Koan products,
and you use a Creative Labs AWE64/AWE32/SB32 card and wish to use
SoundFont banks from within Koan ... then the standard Creative Labs file
AWEMAN32.DLL must exist somewhere in your system path.

In the unlikely circumstances that this file is not present on your machine,
then contact Creative Labs for the latest driver pack (http://www.creaf.com).
Please also see the FAQ on the SSEYO Web site (http://www.sseyo.com)

=============================================================================
EMU8710 Music Card
=============================================================================

The latest 32-bit Koan software (where the SKME is of version 2.04 or later)
now includes seamless support for the EMU8710 Music Card !

This includes FULL SoundFont support (for .SF2 files) !

To use the features of this card, simply treat your Koan software just as
though you were using a Creative Labs AWE64/32/SB64/SB32 soundcard.

=============================================================================
No Sound ?
=============================================================================

If you are getting no sound output from your SSEYO Koan product, please
check the following :

1. Check that you have a valid MIDI Output device specified (check : the
   Setup Options dialog, available through your SSEYO Koan product's Menu).
   SSEYO Koan will default to use the Midi Mapper, which may not have been
   specified properly on your machine - in which case, you can either set-up
   the Midi Mapper properly, or change the Midi Output device to instead be the
   direct driver for your soundcard.
   (Note : for Win 95 users, the MIDI mapper is the default instrument, which
   is defined through Control Panel / Multimedia / MIDI  ... the instrument
   you specify here, is that selected when you specify "MIDI Mapper" as your
   Koan Midi Output Device.)

2. Check that you have at least 1 MIDI device available on your system ! If you
   have none (very rare), then you must either buy a new soundcard which
   supports MIDI, or get hold of some of the new software-only synth drivers,
   such as the Yamaha SoftSynth.

3. Check that you have not specified "SB16 Midi Out" or some other device by
   mistake, without having an external sound source connected !

4. Check that you have not set the SSEYO Koan master volume level to 0 or very
   low.

5. Make sure that you have not used Koan Web to mute your SSEYO Koan output.

6. Check that your soundcard's master Midi output level has not been set to 0
   or very low, or muted altogether.

=============================================================================
If nothing else seems to work ...
=============================================================================

If you've tried everything, and get no output at all ... check all the
following !

1. Check that you have sufficient memory, and check that virtual memory is
   enabled !
2. Close down all Koan applications.
   Just in case one of your .ini files has become corrupted, delete the
   following files from your c:\windows directory, where they exist :
     sseyo.ini
     koan*.ini
     kplus*.ini
     kweb*.ini
     kpro*.ini
     koanpro.ini
3.  Re-start your Koan product, and using the Setup Options dialog, set your
    device driver to be a direct driver like "AWE64 Midi Synth", if this is
    available. Click OK. Open and play a piece. Stop the piece. Close your
    Koan product.  If this works, then your Midi Mapper is broken, but your
    system is now useable. Otherwise, try step 3.
4.  As a final measure, try yet another Midi output device. If one of
    the other device drivers clears the problem, then your soundcard is
    mis-behaving : call your technical support contact for advice. Otherwise,
    if *none* of the midi devices clear the problem, then you are probably
    having problems with your memory manager ...

=============================================================================
REMEMBER  REMEMBER  REMEMBER  REMEMBER  REMEMBER  REMEMBER  REMEMBER
=============================================================================

Remember to check out our Website for new software, pieces and templates !

The Koan GiftBox page (http://www.sseyo.com/koangbox.html) includes a number
of Koan files you can freely use on your own website to 'Koan enable' it.  Why
not give it a go?  It is really easy to do - see the Adding Koan page
(http://www.sseyo.com/addkoan.html).

Better still, why not create your own Koan .SKP files using Koan X, and put
those pieces on your web site, embedded in your web pages ? Easy to do, and
gives a fantastic new dimension to your web site !

=============================================================================
"Float" by Tim Didymus, a SSEYO Koan music title
=============================================================================

SSEYO has now launched the SSEYO Koan music title called "Float" by Tim
Didymus, so please check our website for full details of how to purchase !
It comes with a large number of pieces specially written for the following
soundcards:

  Creative Labs AWE64/AWE32/SB64/SB32 soundcard
  Yamaha DB50XG, or other Yamaha XG-compatible sound source
  Gravis Ultrasound
  IBM MWave
  Orchid NuSound
  Creative Labs Sound Blaster 16 /  Win 3.1
  Creative Labs Sound Blaster 16 / Win 95
  Roland SCC1 or compatible expander module
  Yamaha Soft Synthesizer SGM-MM
  TDK MusicCard

=============================================================================
Brian Eno's "Generative Music 1", a SSEYO Koan music title
=============================================================================

SSEYO has released this major SSEYO Koan music title, created by Brian
Eno with SSEYO Koan Pro.

"The works I have made with Koan symbolise the beginning of a new era of
music.  There are now three musical alternatives: live music, recorded music
and generative music.  Generative music enjoys some of the benefits of both
its ancestors. Like live music it is always different. Like recorded music it
is free of time-and-place limitations - you can hear it when and where you
want. I really think it is possible that our grandchildren will look at us in
wonder and say: 'you mean you used to listen to exactly the same thing over
and over again?' ". (Brian Eno 1996)

Brian Eno is the 1996 BRITs Producer of the Year for Outside by David Bowie,
and pioneer of ambient music. Brian Eno's Generative Music 1 was produced
with SSEYO Koan Pro.

It includes 12 Brian Eno Koan files with SSEYO Koan Plus V1.2 (Win 95/ 3.1
versions) on floppy disk.  Requires Creative Labs AWE64/SB32/AWE32 soundcard.

See our website for more details!

=============================================================================
"Niskala" by Jamuud, a SSEYO Koan music title
=============================================================================

SSEYO has now launched the SSEYO Koan music title called "Niskala" - the
hidden magic underneath - created by Jamuud of Loop Guru (using SSEYO Koan
Pro), so please check our website for full details of how to purchase !
It comes with a large number of pieces for both General Midi, and a number
of SoundFont pieces specially written for the AWE64/AWE32/SB32 soundcards !

*****************************************************************************
PURCHASING SSEYO KOAN PRODUCTS
*****************************************************************************

US Dealers:
==========
Time+Space Distribution USA
  99 Osgood Place
  San Francisco
  California 94133
  USA
  Tel: [phone]
  Tel: [phone]
  Fax: [phone]
  Email: [e-mail]

UK Dealers:
==========
Time+Space Distribution Ltd
  Owlsfoot Business Centre
  Sticklepath
  Nr Oakhampton,
  Devon EX20 2PA
  UK
  Tel: [phone]
  Fax: [phone]
  Email: [e-mail]

Software Warehouse:
  Tel: [phone]
  Fax: [phone]
  WWW: http://www.software-warehouse.co.uk

Software Catalogue:
  Tel: [phone]
  Fax: [phone]
  e-mail: [e-mail]

Japan Dealers
=============
EYES Co Ltd:
  Tel: [phone]
  Fax: [phone]
  e-mail: [e-mail]

Australia Dealers
=================
Toy Satellite:
  Tel: [phone]
  WWW: http://www.peg.apc.org/toysatellite

Distributors:
=============
Ingram Micro Limited:
  Tel: [phone]
  Fax: [phone]

*****************************************************************************
PURCHASING DIRECT FROM SSEYO
*****************************************************************************

Please see our website (http://www.sseyo.com) for the latest pricing
on products purchased direct from SSEYO.

*****************************************************************************
SSEYO CONTACT DETAILS
*****************************************************************************

SSEYO Ltd, Weir Bank,
Monkey Island Lane,
Bray, Berks,
SL6 2ED
UK

Tel:[phone]
Fax:[phone]

WWW:        http://www.sseyo.com
Internet:   [e-mail]

SSEYO Limited - The Internet Music Company and creators of KoanMusic
SSEYO Limited - Generative Music and Sound Environments