Barry Truax

He is the only Canadian recipient of the Magisterium award at the International Competition of Electroacoustic Music, Bourges, France, in 1991. He is a professor emeritus at Simon Fraser University (SFU). In June 2025, SFU awarded him an honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts.

• Name — Barry Truax • Born — 10 May 1947 • Origin — Canada • Occupation — Composer of electroacoustic music, Writer, and Teacher Barry Douglas Truax (born 10 May 1947) is a Canadian composer of electroacoustic music, a writer, and a teacher. He is best known for his association with the World Soundscape Project at Simon Fraser University (SFU) and his development of granular synthesis using sampled sounds to create multi-channel soundscape compositions, such as Riverrun (1986) and Wings of Nike (1987). He is also known for his books Acoustic Communication (1984, 2001) and the Handbook for Acoustic Ecology (1978, 1999). He is the only Canadian recipient of the Magisterium award at the International Competition of Electroacoustic Music, Bourges, France, in 1991. He is a professor emeritus at Simon Fraser University (SFU). In June 2025, SFU awarded him an honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts.

Barry Truax was born in Chatham, Ontario. He obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in physics and mathematics from Queen's University in 1969, and a Master of Music degree from the University of British Columbia in 1971. His academic path further led him to the Institute of Sonology at Utrecht University from 1971 to 1973, where he studied electronic and computer composition under the guidance of Gottfried Michael Koenig and Otto Laske. During this period, he created the POD system of interactive composition with digital synthesis, including FM (Frequency Modulation) synthesis that he learned from its initial creator John Chowning. In 1977 his Sonic Landscape No. 3 won first prize in the computer music category of the Fifth International Competition of Electroacoustic Music in Bourges. His career encompasses a wide spectrum of activities, including musical composition, the study of acoustic ecology, academic publications and advancements in sound technology. For most of his career, Truax was associated with Simon Fraser University, where he now holds the title of Professor Emeritus. In 1973, R. Murray Schafer invited Truax to join the World Soundscape Project (WSP) at Simon Fraser University. The WSP, initiated by Schafer, focused on the emerging field of acoustic ecology, aiming to increase public awareness about the sonic environment and address the growing issue of noise pollution. Truax initially served as a research assistant and later took on the role of director for the project following Schafer’s departure from SFU in 1975. During this period, he edited the Handbook for Acoustic Ecology, first published in 1978. This reference work compiled essential terminology from the fields of acoustics, psychoacoustics, electroacoustics and soundscape studies, providing a scientific foundation for the developing discipline. The Handbook was later released in various formats, including a CD-ROM edition in 1999 and an online version, making it widely accessible to researchers and students. Truax and Schafer defined the term soundscape as how that environment is perceived and understood by those living within it. Truax’s broader contributions to acoustic ecology include the development of theoretical frameworks for understanding the relationship between humans and their sonic environments. The project provided a framework for him to integrate his scientific and musical backgrounds to explore the complexities of the sonic environment.

Barry Truax's academic career at Simon Fraser University began in 1973 and spanned several decades until his retirement in 2015. He held positions in both the School of Communication and the School for the Contemporary Arts where he helped establish the Music program and taught courses in acoustic communication and electroacoustic composition, with a specialization in soundscape composition. Truax supervised numerous students and other composers, such as Hildegard Westerkamp, Paul Dolden, and Arne Eigenfeldt. In 1999 he received the Award for Teaching Excellence from Simon Fraser University. After his retirement, Truax served as the Edgard Varèse Guest Professor at the Technical University, Berlin (2015–16) and as a guest composer at the BEAST Festival in Birmingham (2016). He also taught online webinar courses in sound and audio, as well as soundscape composition. He is a founding member of the International Confederation of Electroacoustic Music, the World Forum for Acoustic Ecology, and the Canadian Electroacoustic Community to which he was appointed Patron in 2024. In 1985, he established the Cambridge Street record label, which specializes in computer and electronic music, and hosted the 1985 International Computer Music Conference in Vancouver. He and his partner, Dr. Guenther Krueger, also established Glenfraser Endowments at both SFU and Concordia University, Montreal to support students in sound studies and electroacoustic composition. He was made a Member of the Order of Canada on December 31, 2025.

Compositions

Aerial, 1979, solo horn and four soundtracks Bamboo, Silk and Stone, 1994, Asian instruments and two soundtracks [co-composed with Randy Raine-Reusch] Dominion, 1991, chamber ensemble and two soundtracks East Wind, 1981, amplified recorder and four soundtracks From the Unseen World, 2012, piano and six soundtracks Inside, 1995, bass oboe and two soundtracks Love Songs, 1979, solo female voice and four soundtracks; Text: Norbert Ruebsaat Nautilus, 1976, solo percussion and four soundtracks Nightwatch, 1982, solo marimba and four soundtracks Patterns, 1996, female speaker and two soundtracks She, a Solo, 1973, mezzo-soprano and tape Sonic Landscape No. 4, 1977, organ and four soundtracks Steam, 2001, alto flute and two soundtracks Tongues of Angels,1988, oboe d'amore, English horn and four soundtracks Twin Souls, 1997, chamber choir and two soundtracks The Way of the Spirit, 2005-2006, ichigenkin, shakuhachi and eight digital soundtracks [co-composed with Randy Raine-Reusch] Wings of Fire, 1996, female cellist and two soundtracks; Text: Joy Kirstin

Androgyne, Mon Amour, 1996–97, amplified male double bass player and two soundtracks; Text: Tennessee Williams The Ghostly Moon, 2008, erhu, guzheng, marimba and digital soundtracks Gilgamesh, 1972–73, narrator, singers, dancers, sopranino recorder, oboe, and four soundtracks; Libretto: William Maranda Powers of Two, 1995-1999, an electroacoustic music opera in four acts, for six singers, two dancers, video tape and eight soundtracks; Libretto: Barry Truax Skin & Metal, 2004, leather percussionist and digital soundtracks Thou & I, 2003, tenor, baritone and digital soundtracks

Beauty and the Beast, 1989, narrator (oboe d'amore and English horn), computer images, and two soundtracks; Graphics: Theo Goldberg Divan, 1985, computer graphic slides and two soundtracks, graphics: Theo Goldberg Night of the Conjurer, 1992, video tape; Video: Theo Goldberg Pacific Dragon, 1991, computer graphic slides and four soundtracks; Graphics: Theo Goldberg Song of Songs, 1992, oboe d'amore, English horn, two soundtracks and computer graphic images; Graphics: Theo Goldberg Threshing (On the Mechanics of Nostalgia), 1993; Video: Thecla Schiphorst The Wings of Nike, 1987, computer graphic slides and two or eight soundtracks; Graphics: Theo Goldberg

Aeolian Voices, 2013, eight digital soundtracks Androgyny, 1978, four computer-synthesized soundtracks Arras, 1980, four computer-synthesized soundtracks Ascendance, 1979, stereo electronic tape Basilica.1992, two digital soundtracks The Bells of Salzburg, 2018, eight digital soundtracks The Blind Man, 1979, two-channel tape; Text: Norbert Ruebsaat Chalice Well, 2009, eight digital soundtracks Earth And Steel, 2013, eight digital soundtracks Fire Spirits, 2010, eight digital soundtracks The Garden of Sonic Delights, 2015–16, multiple soundtracks How the Winds Caressed Me, 2023, eight digital soundtracks Infinity Room, 2019, eight digital soundtracks Island, 2000, eight digital soundtracks La Sera di Benevento, 1999, two digital soundtracks Ocean Deep, 2017, eight digital soundtracks and video Pacific, 1990, four digital soundtracks Pacific Fanfare, 1996, two digital soundtracks Pendlerdrøm, 1997, eight digital soundtracks Prospero’s Voyage, 2004, eight digital soundtracks Rainforest Raven, 2020, eight digital soundtracks Riverrun, 1986, four digital soundtracks; revised 8-channel version 2004 Sequence of Earlier Heaven, 1998, eight digital soundtracks Sequence of Later Heaven, 1993, four digital soundtracks The Shaman Ascending, 2004-2005, eight digital soundtracks Solar Ellipse, 1984–85, four computer-synthesized soundtracks Sonic Landscape No, 3, 1975, rev.1977, four computer-synthesized soundtracks Tapes from Gilgamesh, 1972–73, 12 four-channel tapes Temple, 2002, eight digital soundtracks Wave Edge, 1983, four computer-synthesized soundtracks What the Waters Told Me, 2022, eight digital soundtracks When the Earth Mourned for Me, 2024, eight digital soundtracks

Re-engaging the Natural and Built Soundscape through Soundscape Composition, in Out Of Nature, Chigiana Journal of Musicological Studies, S. Caputo & C. Felici, eds. Third Series, Vol. 2, 2020. Imagining Acoustic Spaces through Listening and Acoustic Ecology, in M. Grimshaw-Aagaard, M. Walther-Hansen, and M. Knakkergaard, eds., The Oxford Handbook of Sound and Imagination, vol. 1, Oxford, 2019. Acoustic Ecology and the World Soundscape Project, in M. Droumeva & R. Jordan, eds., Sound, Media, Ecology, Palgrave Macmillan, 2019. Acoustic Space, Community and Virtual Soundscapes, in The Routledge Companion to Sounding Art, M. Cobussen, V. Meelberg and B. Truax (eds.), New York: Routledge, 2017. Voices in the Soundscape: From Cellphones to Soundscape Composition, in Electrified Voices: Medial, Socio-Historical and Cultural Aspects of Voice Transfer, D. Zakharine & N. Meise, eds., Göttingen: V & R Unipress, 2012. Sonology: A Questionable Science Revisited, in Otto Laske: Navigating New Musical Horizons, J. Tabor, ed. Greenwood Press, 1999. Computer Music and Acoustic Communication: Two Emerging Interdisciplines, in Liora Salter & Alison Hearn, eds., Outside the Lines: Issues in Interdisciplinary Research, McGill-Queen's University Press, 1996. Electroacoustic Music and the Soundscape: The Inner and Outer World, in Companion to Contemporary Musical Thought, J. Paynter, R. Orton, P. Seymour and T. Howell, eds., Vol. 1, London: Routledge, 1992. Computer Music Language Design and the Composing Process, in The Language of Electroacoustic Music, S. Emmerson, ed. London: Macmillan, 1986.

Speech, Music, Soundscape and Listening: Interdisciplinary Explorations, Interdisciplinary Science Reviews, 279-293, 2022. R. Murray Schafer (1933-2021) and the World Soundscape Project, Organised Sound 26(3), 419-421, 2021. Acoustic Sustainability in Urban Design: Lessons from the World Soundscape Project, Cities and Health, 122-126, 2019. Editorial, Context-based Composition, Organised Sound, 22(1), 2017; 23(1), 2018. Paradigm Shifts and Electroacoustic Music: Some Personal Reflections, Organised Sound, 20(1), 105-110, 2015. From Epistemology to Creativity: A Personal View, Journal of Sonic Studies, no. 4, 2013. Sound, Listening and Place: The Aesthetic Dilemma, Organised Sound, 17(3), 193-201, 2012. Soundscape Composition as Global Music: Electroacoustic Music as Soundscape, Organised Sound, 13(2), 103-109, 2008. Homoeroticism and Electroacoustic Music: Absence and Personal Voice, Organised Sound, 8(1), 117-124, 2003. Genres and Techniques of Soundscape Composition as Developed at Simon Fraser University, Organised Sound, 7(1), 5-14, 2002. Electroacoustic Music and the Digital Future, Circuit, 13(1), 21-26, 2002. The Aesthetics of Computer Music: A Questionable Concept Reconsidered, Organised Sound, 5(3), 119-126, 2000. Letter to a 25-year-old Electroacoustic Composer, Organised Sound, 4(3), 147-150, 1999. Composition and Diffusion: Space in Sound in Space, Organised Sound, 3(2), 141-146, 1998. Public Culture and Commercial Culture in Computer Music, Computer Music Journal, 20(4), 27-28, 1996. Soundscape, Acoustic Communication & Environmental Sound Composition, Contemporary Music Review, 15(1), 49-65, 1996. Sounds and Sources in Powers of Two: Towards a Contemporary Myth, Organised Sound, 1(1), 13-21, 1996. The Inner and Outer Complexity of Music, Perspectives of New Music, 32(1), 176-193, 1994. Discovering Inner Complexity: Time-Shifting and Transposition with a Real-time Granulation Technique, Computer Music Journal, 18(2), 1994, 38-48. Composing with Time-Shifted Environmental Sound, Leonardo Music Journal, 2(1), 37-40, 1992. Musical Creativity and Complexity at the Threshold of the 21st Century, Interface, 21(1), 29-42, 1992. ISSN: 03033902 Capturing Musical Knowledge in Software Systems, Interface, 20(3-4), 217-234, 1991. ISSN: 03033902 Composing with Real-Time Granular Sound, Perspectives of New Music, 28(2), 120-134, 1990. Real-Time Granular Synthesis with a Digital Signal Processor, Computer Music Journal, 12(2), 14-26, 1988. Sequence of Earlier Heaven: The Record as a Medium for the Electroacoustic Composer, Leonardo, 20(1), 1988, 25-28. The Computer Music Facility at Simon Fraser University, Computers and the Humanities, 19(4), 225-234, 1985. The PODX System: Interactive Compositional Software for the DMX-1000, Computer Music Journal, 9(1), 1985. ISSN: 0148-9267 Timbral Construction in Arras as a Stochastic Process, Computer Music Journal, 6(3), 1982. The Inverse Relation between Generality and Strength in Computer Music Programs, Interface, 9(1), 1980. ISSN: 03033902 Organizational Techniques for C:M Ratios in Frequency Modulation, Computer Music Journal, 1(4), 39-45,1978. ISSN: 0148-9267; reprinted in Foundations of Computer Music, C. Roads and J. Strawn (eds.). MIT Press, 1985. Computer Music Composition: The Polyphonic POD System, IEEE Computer, 11(8), 1978, 40-50. The Soundscape and Technology, Interface, 6, 1977, 1-8. ISSN: 03033902 The POD System of Interactive Composition Programs, Computer Music Journal, 1(3), 30-39, 1977. A Communicational Approach to Computer Sound Programs, Journal of Music Theory, 20(2), 227-300, 1976. ISSN: 0022-2909 Some Programs for Real-time Computer Synthesis and Composition, Interface, 2, 1973. ISSN: 03033902