Below are the positions up for election and their relevant candidates for SEAMUS in 2024. To vote, please go to this form.
MEMBER AT LARGE for Adjudication
Position Description
Each Member-At-Large is responsible for providing insight and input to the Board from the membership as a whole, and for taking on responsibilities within the activities of the Society as needed and deemed necessary by the Board.
The member-at-large elected in the even years serves specifically to manage the adjudication process for the SEAMUS Conferences, including soliciting nominations for adjudicators.
Carolyn Borcherding
Statement
As the SEAMUS Member-at-Large (adjudication), my goal is to continue providing excellent communication and coordination between the many parties involved with the planning and facilitation of the national conference, the ASCAP/SEAMUS student awards, and the Allen Strange award. I intend to work towards a diverse adjudication pool that reflects and supports our membership.
My experience in this area of work stems from several areas: organizing and directing the National Student Electronic Music Event (N_SEME) in February 2020; coordinating with administration at my current university to acquire significant funding for audio technology; and actively participating in electronic music conferences and festivals each year. I have been a member with SEAMUS since 2017. In that time, I have participated in the national conference in 2018, served as an adjudicator for several terms, and worked as assistant technical director for the national conference in 2022. I am excited for the opportunity to participate further in this organization as a board member.
Thank you for your consideration.
Biography
Carolyn Borcherding is a composer and sound artist who experiments with aural and visual space within which performing bodies and sounding gestures exist in various fluid relationships. She considers each medium essential to the integrity of the work, in which all media interact with, relate to, and inform one another. Her body of work ranges from pieces for solo instrument to multimedia ensembles consisting of video, electronically produced sound, and acoustic instruments.
She is the recipient of the 2020 21st Century Piano Commission Competition at the University of Illinois, second prize in the 2022 ASCAP/SEAMUS Student Commission Competition and was a finalist for the 2019 BMI Student Composition Award. Her works have been performed nationally and internationally at events such as the SEAMUS National Conference, the North American Saxophone Alliance Conference, the Percussive Arts Society International Conference, Electronic Music Midwest, and New Music on the Point. She is currently Assistant Professor of Composition at Baldwin Wallace University.
Kittie Cooper
Statement
I would like to serve as Member-at-Large for Adjudication to help ensure that SEAMUS’s adjudication process runs smoothly and fairly. Furthermore, I see adjudicator recruitment as an important opportunity to lift up existing SEAMUS members, and to open up the community by inviting new-to-SEAMUS adjudicators to be involved. Adjudication is one of the main ways that curation of SEAMUS conferences and programming occurs, and I would like to help make sure that SEAMUS continues to offer its support and visibility to a diverse roster of electroacoustic works, research, and other programming.
In my other duties as Member-at-Large, I am particularly excited to lend my experience as a teacher and administrator to the organization of more educational programming hosted by SEAMUS. I see workshops and other similar programming as opportunities to reach more diverse audiences, while furthering SEAMUS’s mission of removing barriers to creation of electroacoustic music. I have found, both as a participant and as a leader of electronic music workshops, that they are a great way of bringing people together and inviting new members into the community.
I have been involved with SEAMUS since 2020, including serving as an adjudicator for a two-year term, as well as teaching a workshop at SEAMUS 2024. I am an active member in the fields of electronic and electroacoustic music, and particularly in electronic music education. I had a relatively informal education in electronic music and composition until recently, and relied on opportunities like SEAMUS to share my work and to connect with others in the field. I care deeply about creating musical communities where everyone, regardless of who they are or what their background is in music, feels welcome and heard. As Member-at-Large, I would welcome communication and feedback from the SEAMUS community on topics great and small. Thank you for considering me for this role.
Biography
Kittie Cooper is a sound and intermedia artist, performer, and educator based in Charlottesville, Virginia. Much of their work deals with the messy insides of humans, electronics, and other everyday things. Their work has been called “highly original and wonderfully fun.” Kittie’s music has been commissioned and performed by International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), Ensemble Dal Niente, Splinter Reeds, TAK Ensemble, Warp Trio, Popebama, and Ghost Ensemble. She has also performed and presented at a variety of festivals and conferences across the United States, and performs regularly as a guitarist, electronic musician, and improviser.
Currently, Kittie serves as Education Director and a teaching artist for MIMA Music, an educational nonprofit that builds community through collaborative music-making. During the summer, she serves as Director of Electronic Music, Director of Composers Forums, and Faculty for The Walden School Young Musicians Program—a creative music-making program, festival, and summer camp for students ages 9-18. Kittie holds a BM from Northwestern University in Music Education and Guitar Performance, an MEd in Special Education from George Mason University, and an MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts from Simon Fraser University.
You can find more info about Kittie and their work at kittiecooper.com.
Brad Decker
Statement
I am honored to be considered for the Member-at-large (M@L) for Adjudication position on the SEAMUS Board of Directors. I have been an active SEAMUS member for over 20 years, have many years of experience with organizing and hosting festivals and conferences, have served as a SEAMUS conference adjudicator many times, and have seen my students receive Student Awards. I have the background, skills, and experience to serve SEAMUS in this very important position.
The SEAMUS mission statement clearly states how important conferences are to this organization. Conferences allow the organization to encourage new works, create personal networks and artistic connections, attract new members, and enable artists to freely participate in the organization. The M@L for Adjudication position is at the core of conference preparation. Those who submit their hard work to SEAMUS conferences must trust that the adjudication process is not only fair but also open-minded. Furthermore, conference attendees need to trust the organization to present for them a diverse cross-section of our membership, and high quality work.
I have a long and successful track record of organizing electroacoustic music festivals. Since joining the faculty at Eastern Illinois University in 2010, I have personally coordinated and hosted the annual Napoleon Electronic Media Festival (NEMF), as well as the 2019 SCI Region V conference — which involved 8 concerts over three days. I understand the importance of quality communication. A clear adjudication process, a diverse yet high quality repertoire, and positive professional and personal connections are the ingredients to a successful conference. As an active composer and performer of electroacoustic music, I have attended countless conferences, SEAMUS and otherwise, and understand how important they are — and have been — to my artistic and professional development. Bottom line: Conferences generate a sense of community.
The M@L position is a somewhat diplomatic role that connects multiple layers of the organization together: SEAMUS board members, conference hosts, student award winners, and general membership. It oversees Student Awards, which are extremely important for encouraging students to be active artists and members. Two of my students have received the Allen Strange Award, which was an honor for them, and reinforced in them a sense of belonging to this community. Furthermore, as a student commission (now Sweetwater) finalist 20 years ago, I personally know how encouraging these awards are for young composers. As an educator, my primary goal is to encourage emerging artists to find their place. SEAMUS Conferences and Student Awards are ways to tell them that yes, they’ve found it, and they belong.
It would be my honor to serve this great organization in this position. As a long-time member of SEAMUS, as both a student and a professional, I understand its purpose and what it provides. I believe my experience and track record clearly demonstrate that I am suited for the position as Member at Large for Conference Adjudication. Thank you for considering me for this position.
Biography
Brad Decker is a composer, educator, and performer of contemporary concert music, whose works often incorporate electronic, electroacoustic, or interactive media. His recent works explore the interaction of acoustic instruments and electronics to create immersive composite textures. His instrumental works combine virtuosic flourishes, polyrhythmic interplay, and extended techniques. Electronic elements include adventures in analog synthesis, interactive computer processing and sampling, multichannel diffusion, and fixed-media accompaniments. Multimedia projects range from traditional film soundtracks to live-performed improvisations with video. As a double bassist, he regularly performs his own compositions and improvisations that incorporate computer interactivity. His teachers include Peter Hestermann, Kenneth Jacobs, Erik Lund, Heinrich Taube, Steven Taylor, and Scott Wyatt. He has attended masterclasses and lessons with composers Agostino DiScipio, Stefano Gervasoni, Lee Hyla, and Tristan Murail. He is currently Assistant Professor of Composition and Music Technology at Eastern Illinois University. His music is distributed through his website www.braddecker.org
Kramer Elwell
Statement
As it is for many, the SEAMUS organization has been a longtime source of inspiration, a place of community and belonging, and an essential pillar in my professional career. That’s why I am honored to be nominated for the position of Member-at-Large of Adjudication and grateful for the opportunity to represent and serve the SEAMUS community in return. Should I be elected, I am committed to fulfilling all responsibilities and upholding the standards established by previous Members-at-large to the best of my ability.
Above all else, this means prioritizing a conference adjudication process which meets the highest standards of diversity and impartiality. We will continue to consider geographical location, age, academic status, race/ethnicity, gender expression, and musical aesthetic to achieve a fair adjudication process and cultivate the most fulfilling conference experiences possible for the general membership.
This spirit of diversity of impartiality will also translate to the fulfillment of the SEAMUS/Sweetwater and Allen Strange awards, where jury selection will uphold similar standards. These awards remain vital opportunities for young SEAMUS composers and are pivotal to the longevity of the organization. As such, I will maintain a close and active relationship with our partners at Sweetwater Sound to ensure future cohorts of composers can benefit from similar opportunities.
Underscoring both of these issues is a firm commitment to open, transparent dialogue across all areas of responsibility. This includes dialogues with the SEAMUS board, conference hosts, award winners, our award partners, and the general membership.
SEAMUS has evolved into one of the primary homes of electroacoustic music in the United States and maintains itself as the central artistic community for many. Beyond all else, I hope to help foster this electroacoustic community so that it may thrive and inspire all present and future electroacoustic enthusiasts by cultivating further opportunities for musical expression and belonging.
Biography
Dr. Kramer Elwell is a composer, performer, and researcher of acousmatic and electroacoustic music currently residing in the Pacific Northwest. His works have been performed and award distinctions at several international and regional festivals and conferences including: Festival l’Espace du Son, The International Computer Music Conference, Sound and Music Computing Conference, The New York City Electroacoustic Music Festival, The SEAMUS National Conference, Electronic Music Midwest, and many more. As an Artist-in-Residence he has also collaborated with many arts organizations, like: The Glen Arbor Arts Association, the Atlantic Center for the Arts, and the Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts.
He holds degrees from the University of California Santa Barbara, University of Texas at Austin, and Western Washington University. His research interests include graphic or multimedia notation, improvisation, human-computer interaction, installation art, networked performance, interdisciplinary collaboration, and musicological research of electroacoustic music.
Tommy McPhee
Statement
As an emerging electroacoustic composer, I would like the opportunity to serve SEAMUS as the Member-At-Large for Adjudication. This position will allow me to utilize my skillsets in organization and interpersonal management to the benefit of the organization as I facilitate a maximally inclusive and transparent adjudication process. Through my work, I plan to emphasize the importance of communication, both between the board and the organization as well as between the organization and the field of electroacoustic music broadly. This will help us facilitate a democratic judicial process adaptive to the most current trends amidst a rapidly changing musical landscape.
As a 25-year-old doctoral student in Interdisciplinary Digital Media, I think my fresh perspective on the intersections between new music and technology will allow me to contribute forward-looking input to the board. I am especially interested in guiding this organization into the future by increasing its connectedness to the contemporary music world and particularly to the rapidly growing newest generation of electroacoustic composers to which I belong.
In an age of restructuring and uncertainty amidst academia and the arts, I plan to utilize this position to advocate for the importance of our research and creative practices. Electroacoustic music’s relationships to academia, industry, and culture at large are of the upmost importance to our personal opportunities, and I believe we as artists and researchers should in turn assert our importance to these facets of society. Through communication both within and outside of the organization, we can establish a transparent and collective approach to adjudicating the musical and academic works we choose to engage with as a group and present to the public. Crucial to this process will be the selection of a robust pannel of judges with a wide variety of interests and stylistic practices from both within and outside of the organization. I plan to use my role to solicit a wide range and high quantity of qualified judges, as well as feedback about the adjudication process from members, both of which will allow me to make the adjudication process smooth and transparent.
I am especially interested in helping foster and preserve this organization’s longstanding tradition of artistic and technical innovation through the service and feedback this role allows me to provide. Through your support, I can handle the strain caused by all aspects of the time-consuming adjudication process, including the selection of judges and management procedures, as well as bolster the role of all SEAMUS members within this process. Thank you for your consideration and I am excited for the opportunity to serve you as the next SEAMUS Member-at-Large for Adjudication!
Bio
Tommy McPhee (born 1998) is an emerging composer and media artist from Houston, TX. His focus on creative abstraction has led him to a process-driven composition style which makes ample use of technology and audiovisual interaction. Though his current practice extensively utilizes the digital medium, most of McPhee’s training and experience lies within more traditional styles of music. McPhee has composed extensively for acoustic instrumentation and has extensive experience with hardware electronics and vernacular genres such as hip-hop.
Through the support of a full-ride academic scholarship, McPhee obtained a BM in Music Composition at Lamar University in 2021. He then obtained an MM in Music Technology at Georgia Southern University, where he taught and designed curriculum for Digital Audio Workstations and Recording Studio Techniques as the sole instructor of record. McPhee is currently pursuing a DMA in Interdisciplinary Digital Media at Arizona State University, where he teaches aural skills. In addition to his music theory teaching assistant, McPhee processes, spatializes, and integrates sounds as a research assistant for the MILES project, an in-development virtual reality experience to teach music theory. After obtaining his DMA in the Spring of 2026, McPhee plans to continue both research-oriented work and instruction in academia.
J. Andrew Smith
Statement
A longtime member of SEAMUS, I see the organization as a vital community for the promotion and creation of electronic music. I see Member-at-Large for Adjudication as an integral position within SEAMUS—both for its role in ensuring a fair and equitable adjudication process for the national conference, and for its role as an ambassador between the membership of the organization and the rest of the leadership. I see this position’s primary responsibility as emphasizing the communal aspect of SEAMUS as a passionate advocate for our members. Additionally, as a former finalist of a SEAMUS student award, I know the significance that it [AS1] can play in the career of young composers. Having been an adjudicator for multiple SEAMUS conferences in the past, I have a deep understanding of the process and the importance that conference adjudication can play in shaping not only the conferences themselves, but also SEAMUS as an organization. If I am selected to be the Member-at-Large for Adjudication, I will gladly serve the Board and the SEAMUS community as a whole.
Bio
An educator, composer, electronic musician, and vocalist from Atlanta, GA, J. Andrew Wright Smith (b. 1992) is zealous about the intersections between acousmatic sound, performers, and improvisation. His works often delve into personal narratives and how they can enrich abstract mediums. As a vocalist, he maintains a passion for visceral, strange, and electrifying sounds.
Andrew’s works have been performed at SEAMUS conferences, SPLICE Institute and Festival, Third Practice Electroacoustic Music Festival, New Music on the Point, Electric LaTex, and PASIC. In 2022, he was one of the finalists in the ASCAP/SEAMUS Student Commission Competition for his piece Arbitrary/Peremptory. A graduate of the University of North Texas’s PhD program in Composition, Andrew’s mentors have included Joseph Klein, Panayiotis Kokoras, John Nelson, and Elainie Lillios.
His dissertation Utterances: Approaching a New Acousmatic Praxis examines the philosophical roots of acousmatic music and attempts to modernize Pierre Schaeffer’s conceptions of sound and emphasize the significance of the ways that sound is used by composers as the crux of a modern acousmatic praxis.
Currently Assistant Professor of Practice in Music Technology at the University of Texas San Antonio, Andrew has taught electronic music and composition at Bowling Green State University, Owens Community College, and UNT.
Isaac Smith
Statement
I am excited for the opportunity to serve as SEAMUS’ Board Member-at-Large for Adjudication. SEAMUS is an organization that represents a quickly changing, wide-ranging field of creative endeavors and contains many artists who are on the cutting edge of the creative possibilities of technology. It offers these artists resources, a platform for performance, and most importantly, a community of collaborators. Arts administration has been an important part of my career for several years, and devoting my further efforts to encouraging the health and development of an organization like SEAMUS seems as lofty a goal as I am ever likely to pursue.
Not only am I passionate about the organization itself, I feel I am qualified to confidently step into the position of Member-at-Large for Adjudication. While I was an adjudicator for several nonprofit arts organizations, including the Composers of Oregon Chamber Orchestra and the Sacramento Youth Symphony, I held myself to a high standard of fairness and impartiality when evaluating submissions and performances. The field of electroacoustic music is much broader than that of the orchestral world, however, and as Member-at-Large I will be committed to assembling panels of adjudicators whose areas of interest and expertise represent that breadth of creativity, enabling submissions to be appreciated and evaluated on their artistic merits, not merely their aesthetics.
The Member-at-Large position also requires that the appointee be willing to take on whatever responsibilities the board deems necessary, and in that role I will also excel. My time in music has provided opportunities to work in a large variety of roles: as an administrative assistant for the Oregon Bach Festival Composers Symposium, as a webmaster and registration administrator for the Symphony of 1,000 (the largest symphonic event in Sacramento’s history), as a librarian, audio technician, and many other positions. I have a wide range of skills that would benefit SEAMUS, and I am willing to learn new skills to fulfill the responsibilities asked of me by the board.
Perhaps the most crucial duty of the Member-at-Large position is to act as a liaison between the membership and the board. Though SEAMUS’ board has historically been well-connected and responsive to the input of members, I will take this duty seriously as well. I will advocate for the membership to the best of my ability, and communicate regularly with members to ensure that I am not misrepresenting them. I am fortunate in that I find SEAMUS members to be some of the most interesting people I know, and I enjoy engaging with the community even when I am not in a position to represent it administratively.
If elected, I will approach my responsibilities with seriousness, enthusiasm, and experience. I am thrilled at the prospect of being able to support SEAMUS in a more involved capacity than as a member, and I hope the membership will express their confidence in me by electing me Member-at-Large for Adjudication. Thank you.
Bio
Isaac Smith was born in 1991. He earned his Bachelors in Music Theory and Composition at CSU, Sacramento in 2013. In 2011, he studied electronic music at the Hochschule für Musik in Trossingen, Germany, also attending Informatics classes at Furtwangen University. In 2019, he earned a Masters of Music in Composition from the University of Oregon, where he headed the Oregon Composers Forum. Isaac is currently studying for his Doctorate of Music in Composition at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, where he is an Associate Instructor in Music Theory. He is a member of the Center for Electronic and Computer Music at IU and has completed coursework for a doctoral minor in Computer Music. He was a finalist for the Fermilab Composer-in-Residence position for his orbital panning work Formation, which was performed at the SEAMUS National Conference in 2023. His research interests include data sonification of the gravitational waves produced by merging black holes, and using neural networks to augment live electronic performance. He lives in Bloomington, Indiana with his wife Pafoua and several well-loved house plants.
Juan Vasquez
Statement
I am writing to express my interest in serving as the Member-at-Large for Adjudication. I bring to the table not just a strong professional background as an international composer, researcher, and game developer, but also years of active involvement in SEAMUS as an adjudicator and associate technical producer.
I see the role of Member-at-Large for Adjudication as an opportunity to use my skills and experiences to facilitate a more inclusive, interconnected, and global outlook. My aspiration is to diversify the adjudication process further by integrating a more extensive, international pool of adjudicators. I believe that infusing diversity in thought and perspective will not only enrich the adjudication process but also foster a culture that champions inclusivity and broadened perspectives, in that way augmenting the artistic perspective of our collective creativity.
Bio
Dr. Juan Carlos Vasquez (www.jcvasquez.com) is an award-winning composer, researcher, and game developer. His works are frequently performed worldwide, having premiered in over 30 countries across the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Australia. Vasquez has received grants, commissions, and/or prizes from numerous esteemed institutions, including the ZKM, the International Computer Music Association, the Nokia Research Center, Colombia’s Ministry of Culture, the Sibelius Academy Foundation, the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, the Arts Promotion Centre in Finland, the Finnish National Gallery, and the Royal College of Music in London, UK. Vasquez is currently an Assistant Professor at the School of Cultural Technology at Xi’an Jiaotong Liverpool University.
As a researcher, Vasquez’s writings can be found in the Computer Music Journal, the Leonardo Music Journal, and proceedings from leading conferences in the field. Vasquez received his education from the Sibelius Academy (FI), Aalto University (FI), and the University of Virginia (US). Babel Scores publishes his scores, and his music is distributed by Naxos, MIT Press (US), Important Records (US), and Phasma Music (Poland). Vasquez is sponsored by Genelec (FI) and is a member of the Society of Finnish Composers.
Sam Wells
Statement
I am Sam Wells, and I am honored to be considered for the position of Member-At-Large for Adjudication. I have been a member of SEAMUS for over a decade and deeply value the community, artistic engagement, and the evolution of our organization. I am driven to contribute to SEAMUS in this vital role.
By bridging the board and the membership, the Member-At-Large for Adjudication plays a crucial role in ensuring that the voices and needs of our diverse community are heard and addressed. This position is pivotal in managing the adjudication processes for SEAMUS conferences and student awards, demanding a fair, transparent, and inclusive approach.
SEAMUS is at its best when it reflects the diverse and dynamic nature of our field. Our adjudication processes help realize this reflection. In pursuit of these ideals, I will:
- Actively solicit input from our members to ensure our adjudication practices are aligned with the evolving trends and needs of our community.
- Aim to attract a diverse range of adjudicators and recognize works that reflect the rich tapestry of our society, including those from underrepresented voices.
- Commit myself to making the adjudication process as transparent and fair as possible, ensuring that all members understand and trust the process.
- Work towards recognizing and encouraging innovative and experimental works in electro-acoustic music, fostering both artistic and academic advancements.
Beyond my activity as a member of SEAMUS, my background as an active electro-acoustic performer-composer and multimedia artist, past-Treasurer and board member of SPLICE, and a frequent adjudicator for numerous national and international conferences equips me with the insights and skills necessary for this role.
I served as Conference Portal Developer for SEAMUS from 2018-2021, assisting the Technical Director as we updated and enhanced the conference submission and adjudication processes. Through this, I gained experience in how SEAMUS’s adjudication process functions and is shaped at the direction of the board and membership, which will be invaluable in effectively managing the adjudication processes.
I am committed to serving SEAMUS and its mission to promote, support, and enable the growth of electro-acoustic music. By electing me as your Member-At-Large for Adjudication, I assure you of my dedication to fostering a fair, inclusive, and innovative environment and openness to dialogue that resonates with our shared passion for our community and organization.
Bio
Sam Wells is a musician and artist in Philadelphia whose work often invokes a heightened sense of the entanglements of space, air, breath, and body. His work is rooted in the humanity of breath, and highlights our interrelations with the cosmic, terrestrial, social, and internal spaces that surround us.
Sam is a trumpeter and improvisor who has performed around the world and is a member of Aeroidio, the Miller/Vidiksis/Wells trio, and SPLICE Ensemble.
As a composer, Sam creates acoustic, electroacoustic, and electronic works often incorporating multimedia elements. His works have been performed throughout the United States and internationally. As an avid collaborator, Sam has written for theater and dance productions, as well as many notable performers of contemporary music.
Sam is a Cycling ’74 Max Certified Trainer and organizes the Max Meetup Philadelphia event series. He runs Scarp Records, a record label dedicated to highlighting the experimental and improvisational practices of performer/composers.
Sam holds performance and composition degrees at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, graduate degrees in Trumpet Performance and Computer Music Composition at Indiana University, and a doctoral degree at the California Institute of the Arts. Sam is an Assistant Professor of Music Technology at Temple University. [https://sllewm.as]
PRESIDENT
Position Description
The President is the chief operating officer of the Society and is responsible for calling board meetings, carrying out the mission of the organization, representing the Society at meetings of other societies or organizations, and for administering the SEAMUS Award. The President is ultimately responsible for all operations and programs affiliated with SEAMUS, including the supervision of the other elected officers.
The President channels discussion amongst the Board of Directors on annual issues and choices related to the annual national conference. The President thus initiates and manages searches for conference hosts and reviews the suitability of proposed conference sites (both in-person and remote) prior to final selection by the Board. The President advises conference hosts through the preliminary stages of conference preparations, and serves as liaison between conference hosts and the Board. The President also works with the Director of Communications and the Member(s)-at-Large and the Technology Director and any supporting technical staff to review and shape the proposed design for a given conference’s submissions services.
Mark Vaughn
Statement
Dear SEAMUS members,
Having served as Director of Communications for SEAMUS over the past year and having had the opportunity to collaborate with all members of the SEAMUS Board of Directors on the various initiatives, administrative duties, and goals of the organization, I feel that my experience as both a board member and a SEAMUS member has prepared me well to serve as SEAMUS president and I hope to receive your support.
I am interested in serving in this role for multiple reasons. The first reason is I feel that institutions play a profound role in shaping the field they operate in and, as such, I feel that it is important to both participate in and critically evaluate the role those institutions perform in a given field. In my experience working with the current board, I have seen that same philosophy demonstrated repeatedly and I am excited by the direction that SEAMUS is taking toward its mission knowing that each board member is committed to both maintaining the quality of the organization and seeking to better it.
A second reason for my interest in this role is based on my understanding of the office of SEAMUS President. As Director of Communications, I worked closely with current president Elizabeth Hoffman and in my observation of Liz’s diligent work as president I saw that one of the president’s primary responsibilities is to assist the other board members in realizing their duties and goals within the organization as effectively as possible. I feel that I am well-suited to this task, as I have sought to engage with and understand all aspects of the SEAMUS organization during my tenure on the board. I am also confident in my ability to have positive working relationships with each member of the board based on my experiences of the past year.
My final reason for wanting to serve as president relates to the specific challenges that SEAMUS faces as an organization. There are multiple important topics the organization is continuing to address, including the role of an annual centralized national conference; the pressing issue of economic equity in academic and artistic opportunity; and the need for diverse perspectives, aesthetic approaches, and orientations in and toward our field. These types of challenges are not unique to SEAMUS, but derive from larger economic and social issues in academic music, art institutions, and society in general. I feel that as an institution, SEAMUS has the opportunity to engage with these issues in a way that is open, inventive and equitable. In this regard, I am especially interested in emphasizing the communal and collaborative aspects of the organization.
In conclusion, I feel I have a particular interest in the way SEAMUS can creatively benefit the field it is a part of and that I will be able to serve the organization well as president. I hope you also feel I am well-suited to this role. Thank you for reading my statement.
Sincerely,
Mark Vaughn
Biography
Mark Vaughn is a composer working primarily in electronic music and intermedia environments. Artistically, he is interested in the creation of music and art that acknowledges the multiple layers of signification and mediation present in aesthetic perception, layers such as aesthetic and institutional conventions, the perspective of the listener, and the attribute of viscerality in musical perception. With this in mind, he frequently incorporates media of many types in his work.
Vaughn received his Ph.D. and M.A. in Music Composition from the University of North Texas and his Bachelor’s degree in Music Technology from Montana State University. He currently works as a full-time professor of music and audio engineering at Grayson College in Denison, TX. Additionally, he is active as a composer around the world, having had work featured at ICMC, SEAMUS, Sonic Matter, NYCEMF, and other festivals.
VP for Membership
Position Description
The VP for Membership is responsible for recruiting and maintaining membership within the Society. The VP is also responsible for maintaining the membership database and disseminating the membership mailing list as appropriate. In this last capacity the VP for Membership works closely with the Technical Director. Since 2023 the VP for Membership has also overseen the SEAMUS mentor-mentee initiative.
Abby Aresty
Statement
I am excited at the prospect of continuing to serve the SEAMUS community as VP for Membership, I share SEAMUS’s strong commitment to supporting students, artists, and educators creating new electroacoustic music today. If re-elected, I would continue to grow the mentorship project I helped to launch in 2023. I would collaborate with fellow board members and the membership more broadly to assess membership needs and priorities and would aim to identify opportunities for implementation of these priorities.
Bio
Dr. Abby Aresty is a sound artist, composer, and educator. Aresty’s site-specific installations have been featured in local and national news outlets; Paths II: The Music of Trees, a temporary installation in Seattle’s Washington Park Arboretum, was featured in an interview with Melissa Block on NPR’s All Things Considered and was hailed as “otherworldly” and “sometimes eerie, sometimes transportingly lovely,” by the Seattle Times. Aresty has presented her research in the United States, Canada, Australia, Hong Kong, and virtually at conferences including ICMC, Balance/Unbalance, ISEA, Sonic Environments, NIME, NYCEMF, and ACM’s Interaction Design and Children conference. Recent collaborations have won awards such as NIME’s ‘Learn to Play, Play to Learn’ award and an honorary mention for the Pamela Z diversity award. Aresty has held fellowships at the Studio for Creative Inquiry at Carnegie Mellon University, Grinnell College, and the Acoustic Ecology Lab at Arizona State University’s Herberger Institute of Design and the Arts. From 2017-2024, Aresty was Technical Director and Lecturer for Oberlin Conservatory’s Technology in Music and Related Arts (TIMARA) Department, where she ran the Crafting Sound Lab, a community-based research lab specializing in sound and hybrid technologies and launched the Girls Electronic Arts Retreat (GEAR), a STEAM summer camp in music technology for 3rd-5th grade girls. Aresty is currently the Interim director of the Office of Undergraduate Research and the Center for Learning, Education, and Research at Oberlin College.