Compiling libpd as a Processing library

Last week Peter Kirn of CreateDigitalMusic gave a presentation at Virginia Tech on using libpd--the PureData library--inside of Processing.  He showed a simple PD patch that could then be controlled through a visual interface set up in a Processing sketch.  Coupled with the piece that Peter performed at the Laptop Orchestra concert event, which used libpd inside of Processing, my interest was definitely peaked.  So I began searching the Internet to find this libpd and documentation on how to get it running inside of Processing.

It became readily apparent that, while libpd was simple enough to find (hosted here: http://gitorious.org/pdlib), documentation on building, installing, or getting it into Processing was somewhat lacking.  Considering libpd is still an alpha build according to the puredata.info community, I can let this slide.  Documentation will probably improve once an official stable release is out.  But until then, I've put together this tutorial to show how I got libpd built and working inside of the Processing environment on Linux using the Eclipse IDE.

Beyond: Spring 2011 L2Ork Benefit Event

The Spring 2011 Virginia Tech Linux Laptop Orchestra (L2Ork) concert event took place this past Saturday, April 9th.  Following a well-received forty five minute program with the Boys and Girls Club Laptop Orchestra at the Dumas Center in Roanoke, VA, on Friday, April 8th, this concert was a good balance of confidence and professionalism, and an inviting and informal atmosphere.  The children's program, featuring the Boys and Girls Club from the Roanoke Academy of Math and Science, started at 7pm.  Since I had been working with the boys and girls, instructing and conducting them twice a week for the past two months, this program was my primary concern.  And I was not disappointed!  The kids performed well under pressure, better than they had performed at any rehearsal.  Nothing like a hall full of expectant parents to make kids buckle down and focus.  They performed two pieces that I had created for them, one being a simple arrangement of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and the other a piece based on rhythmic patterns using their voice as an instrument sample within the Renoise sequencer/DAW.  The boys and girls were joined on both these pieces by guest artist Ron Coulter, who laid down some sweet drum beats to accompany the kids.  The boys and girls also performed two pieces with the L2Ork ensemble: Citadel, the staple L2Ork ensemble piece, featuring soprano vocalist Aurora Martin; and Rain, a new piece by Ico Bukvic that premiered at the event.