Learning at the Leading Edge -- Bret Battey

Bret Battey

"For the composer who writes music that doesn't have a drum beat, it can be pretty hard to get an audience to listen. I was and am convinced that image can provide a bridge to help people relate to sound in new ways."

Bret Battey
Doctor of Musical Arts Candidate - Music Composition

I've had professional experience as a graphic designer, web master, and software systems tester and analyst. I also have a lifelong involvement in making music. My graduate studies here at the UW are aimed at beginning a career in the creation of experimental, hybrid audio/visual artworks.

Over the past three decades, exponentially increasing growth in the visual and aural domains has revolutionized the arts and sciences worldwide. At the foundation of this work is a rich symbiosis between artistic inquiry, scientific exploration and technological innovation -- a continual, dynamic interplay between research, discovery, creation and communication.

My recent work "Writing on the Surface", is a 15 minute hybrid work of computer music and digital video, video effects and computer animation. My work arises from a rich web of inspirations - visual, musical, philosophical, emotional, spiritual and technical.

Being involved with faculty, visiting artists and other students in the Center for Advanced Research Technologies in the Arts and Humanities (CARTAH) has allowed me great creative freedom and the opportunity for some amazing collaborations.

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UW Center for Advanced Research Technologies in the Arts and Humanities (CARTAH)
Bret Battey's personal web site
Computer Music Organization

Richard Karpen, Professor of Music Composition / Computer Music
Director, CARTAH Lab

As a professor at the UW, I can't imagine anything better than working with young artists who, with passion and through much hard work, are exploring new genres of Digital Art. They challenge us as they pursue paths that are breaking down the traditional separation of our arts disciplines. Bret Battey is one of the most outstanding of these students. His work, which is both technically stunning and deeply expressive, has propelled him into the international arena of the Digital Arts even while still a student. He is a leader among his peers and an inspiration to his fellow students working at CARTAH. At the same time that Bret now moves towards a new phase in his career (he's graduating this year), an ever increasing number of uniquely talented students are crowding CARTAH's studios creating new Digital Art that would not have been possible only a few years ago. These are exciting times!!

Distance, Dance, Discern
Bret Battey, 1996