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Table of Contents

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To access these articles, which are all complete, pull them down from the menu above.

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The McLean Mix: Philosophies and Soliloquies by Barton McLean. Found in "Asterisk A Journal of New Music," Vol 2 #2, May, 1976. Ann Arbor, Michigan.An often humorous early cross-section of the first concerts and tours by Priscilla and Barton McLean, as they begin their first tentative steps into touring.

Fire and Ice: A Query by Priscilla McLean.  Seen in "Perspectives of New Music, " Fall/Winter 1977. Some valuable insights into the theoretical basis of what she calls "imago - abstract" sounds, which are those sounds that are both electronic and that have a subconscious meaning in the human mind beyond their immediate context. Forms a theoretical basis for electronic sounds that are outside traditional tonal pitch-rhythm contexts.

Coping with Shattered Illusions by Barton McLean. Appearing in "Polyphony" (which was the forerunner of "Electronic Musician," Jan/Feb. 1980, pp. 9-11, 20.  Some theoretical and practical considerations in composing for live instrument and tape, with examples from McLean's "Dimensions" series.  

Zagreb's Music Biennale No. 11  by Priscilla McLean.  In "Musical America," October, 1981, pp. 33-34. This is one of several reviews and articles Priscilla wrote for Musical America, and gives an insight into the contemporary music scene in Europe at that time period, along with some personal experiences of The McLean Mix as they participated in this festival.

The McLean Mix:  Inner Tension of the Surrealistic by Priscilla and Barton McLean.  AWC News (American Women Composers), January 1982, Vol. 3 #3, pp. 8-14.  Another slice of McLean Mix touring and a theoretical basis for their approach as analogous with Surrealism.  

Symbolic Extension and its Corruption of Music by Barton McLean. Appearing in "Perspectives of New Music", Fall-Winter 1981-Spring-Summer 1982 (Vol. 20, nos. 1 &2).  In this seminal piece, McLean explores ideas by cultural anthropoligist Edward T. Hall, Marshall McLuhan, Trevor Wishart, Rollo May, etc.as they apply to some of the fundamental crises in education (music composition, music theory, and musicology). Central to his theme is how the "extension" process of of the human mind (building ever greater theoretical models which ultimately relate to only themselves and not the underlying music they are subsuming) has fundamentally corrupted much of what we teach in music theory, history, and composition. A scathing critique.

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The Fairlight CMI and Its Uses in Advanced Laser Graphics by Barton McLean. Appearing in International Computer Music Conference Proceedings: vol. 1981.

The McLean Mix Tours Australia -- First Impressions by Priscilla and Barton McLean. "Sounds Australian" (the equivalent to the American Music Center publication), #28, Summer, 1990, pp. 32-33. A vivid account of The McLean Mix Pacific Rim tour and some comparisons between new music support in Australia, New Zealand, and the USA.

Touring the South Pacific:  Images of Faraway Places by Barton McLean.  Appearing in the "Journal SEAMUS ," Nov. 1990.  Describes an extended tour-adventure of the McLeans'  duo The McLean Mix in the Pacific Rim (Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii), along with insights into their respective contemporary music scenes and composers.

Composition with Sound and Light by Barton McLean.  "Leonardo Journal," Vol 2, No. 1, pp. 19-22, 1992.  McLean describes two interlocking aspects of his work: (1) the MIDI keyboard-controlled Sparkling Light Console  which he developed, along with the esthetic considerations of developing a new abstract medium of light with which to compose.

The McLean Mix Muses Upon the Ultimate Musical Instrument  by Priscilla and Barton McLean. "Experimental Musical Instruments," Sept. 1994, pp. 20-23.  Two ideas run through this article.  First, esthetic and practical consideration of adoping natural sounds (the "ultimate musical instrument") to a compositional approach.  Second, exploring how the McLeans invent instruments of their own (natural or hi-tech) as their compositional needs require.

A Professional Composer's View of the Theory/Composition Curriculum and its Relevance to the Community-at-Large  by Barton McLean. "The SCI Newsletter," Vol. 25, #7, Aug/Sept. 1995.  This is the piece which stirred a hornet's nest of controversy among university teachers of composition and theory. These reverberations echoed through two years of rebuttal and counter-rebuttal in the SCI Newsletter's pages. It explores the relevance of today's typical comp/theory curricula and its relevance (or lack thereof) to the larger arts community and to the career prospects of the students.  

In Search of an Audience:  Outside the Bubble  by Barton McLean.  "Journal SEAMUS," April '96, Vol. 11, #1, pp. 4-7.  Where have the large, enthusiastic audiences for electroacoustic music of the 60's and 70's gone?  McLean explores some reasons for the separation of abstract electroacoustic music from the arts community audience in general, and offers personal insights into how he and his wife Priscilla, as The McLean Mix, grapple with this problem as they make their full-time living from touring.  

TUNUGAN -- A Report  by Priscilla McLean. "Society of Composers, Inc., Newsletter," Vol 27 #6, June/July '97. The McLean Mix was  recently chosen as the USA representative of the International Asian Composers League Festival -- TUNUGAN in Manila, Philippines.   Priscilla's subsequent report details fascinating insights into how Asian serious composers interact, along with similarities and differences between Western and Asian composers. Included is a hair-raising account of the McLean Mix's outdoor performance in a courtyard with an impending typhoon on the horizon.

Planting the Seeds of Music Technology in Borneo  by Priscilla McLean. "Journal SEAMUS," Vol. 13, #1, April, '98, pp. 4-7. "The trip of a lifetime," as Barton and Priscilla McLean, at the invitation of the government of Malaysia, establish residency at the Universiti Malaysia-Sarawak for 4 months, undergoing extensive field trips into the pristine jungle, living with former headhunter tribes, partaking of the rich Islamic culture, recording and documenting tribal musics and nature sounds never before heard outside the country.

JAMBORI RIMBA: Audience-Interactive Installation  by Barton McLean.  This is a companion to the above and describes what the McLeans did as a final project for their residency in Malaysia --  a project which was subsequently broadcast nationally over the Malaysia TV -1 network.

How to Survive and Prosper as Revealed by the "Newsletter Nine"  by Barton McLean.  "Society of Composers, Inc. "Newsletter," Vol. 13, Aug/Sept '98.  As a member of the Executive Committee of SCI (Independent Composer Representative), McLean coordinated a series of articles in the SCI Newsletter by nine independent composers who are succeeding in making a full-time living from their work. Many lessons were gleaned from these pieces, including a few real surprises. In this article, McLean summarizes his conclusions drawn from working with these nine artists.

The Ultimate Symphonius 2000,  by Barton McLean.  Journal SEAMUS, Fall, 1999.  McLean narrates the inception and execution of this most elaborate of all the McLean Mix audience-interactive events.

What May Happen to Your Music After You Die and What You Can Do About It,  by Barton McLean. Groundbreaking, exhaustive research article appearing in the August, 2001 issue of the American Music Center's NewMusicBox. August, 2001. This links directly to the AMC (now called New Music USA) site. This links directly to the site.

The Nuts and Bolts of Touring for a Living. by Barton McLean.  This major article defines what the McLean Mix is about and how it has managed to survive as a full time professional experimental music/media duo for 25+ years. For newcomers to the field, as well as seasoned professionals, this is a must read.  Published in JOURNAL SEAMUS, Vol. 20 # 1, Fall, 2008.  

The Electronic Marriage by Joseph Dalton.  The Albany Times Union, 1/16/05. This is a 2-page feature article in the Arts Section of the Sunday paper, detailing various aspects of the McLeans' professional as well as personal lives with many lively anecdotes spanning their more than 40 year history together.   

KYMA 7 and a Search for the Ultimate Sound Creation Instrument. By Barton McLean. Computer Music Journal, Fall, 2015. A comprehensive review of the latest software/hardware design upgrade from Symbolic Sound, by one who has spent two intensive months as a beta tester for the program. March, 2015.

A Series of articles and reviews by Barton McLean relating to the new Experimental Media Performing Arts Center (EMPAC) at RPI:

"FEED" by Kurt Hentschlager.  A review by Barton McLean in JOURNAL SEAMUS, Vol. 19, #2, Spring, 2008, pp. 26-7.
Reflections on the EMPAC Opening.  A description of the festivities, performances, and installations at the EMPAC opening, with musings on what this might mean for the future. SEAMUS NEWSLETTER, Winter, 2008-9

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Reflections on the EMPAC Opening.  A description of the festivities, performances, and installations at the EMPAC opening, with musings on what this might mean for the future. SEAMUS NEWSLETTER, Winter, 2008-9

EMPAC's Exciting and Provocative Fall Season. EMPAC continues to produce a unique blend of multidisciplinary.multimedia events events mostly unavailable to USA audiences.  SEAMUS NEWSLETTER,Spring, 2009 edition.

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A series of reviews appearing in the Albany TImes Union by Priscilla McLean. Over 100 reviews spanning several years. 

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