Solo performance practice in Electronic Music is traditionally linked to the idea of a performer operating on a laptop, whereas composing electroacoustic music is an activity that offers countless sonic paradigms, such as the use of amplification, the transformation of the timbre of an acoustic instrument, the use of sound spatialisation etc. But is it possible to compose a solo electronic music performance without the laptop being the center of the attention? Is it possible to interact with a digital world without pressing a button? How can we build a sonic relationship between common objects and digital technologies? Can an electronic musician be a performer as much as an instrumentalist?

For the impuls Academy 2023 Davide Gagliardi has invisioned a call for impuls Academy participants aiming to develop new solo Electronic Music repertoire with a strong performative profile, which brings the electronic musician away from the laptop’s screen, focusing on her/his stage presence, reflecting upon the role of the digital media in a music performance and considering technology as active and creative element of our everyday practice. Selected participants were then offered the possibility to start creating new pieces in collaboration with Davide Gagliardi, Professor of Multimedia at the Conservatory of Milan, composer, performer and sound director of the Schallfeld Ensemble, already before the start of the impuls Academy, hereby profiting from his support also in relations to both a performative and technical point of view, i.e. providing assistance during the software development process, discussing about notation, and finally also performing the piece.