Research project at FOTO WIEN 2025
14.10.2025
The mdw is participating in this year’s FOTO WIEN 2025 with a photo exhibition at the Future Art Lab. Alongside other photographers, the exhibition features the work of Stephan Polzer, who has documented various aspects of the research project Études for Live-Electronics. The exibition includes the sound installation "Cloud Hands" by Tim-Tarek Grund and Alex Hofmann. As part of the program, Tim-Tarek Grund will give an audiovisual performance for live electronics and live video projection "Velvet Occlusion" on October 18 at 7 PM, and Nyokabi Kariũki will host a Listening Session on the music of Egyptian composer Halim El-Dabh on October 21 at 6 PM at Klangtheater of the Future Art Lab.
New equipment – new research
13.10.2025
We are delighted to be able to launch a study on the verification and material selection of 3D-printed bridges in comparison to the original wooden ones. We have mounted our new automatic impulse hammer on the robot arm and are eagerly awaiting the results. What we already know: never before have we been able to excite an instrument to vibrate with such a high frequency bandwidth and such reproducibility!
Interdepartmental Exchange between mdw and SHCM
26.09.2025
Representatives from the mdw – University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna and the SHCM – Shanghai Conservatory of Music came together for an interinstitutional exchange. The meeting provided space for discussion on structural developments, institutional differences, ongoing research projects, and the interconnection between research and teaching.
Publication of Video "What is this sound?"
23.09.2025
Where physics meets music: Ever wondered what makes the cello sound so unique? Discover the fascinating physics behind bowed string instruments! Montserrat Pàmies-Vilà from the Department of Music Acoustics – Wiener Klangstil at mdw takes you on a journey through the acoustics of the cello, showing how the movement of the bow creates those amazing sounds.
Participation at SMC 2025
11.07.2025
The 22nd Sound and Music Computing Conference (SMC 2025) takes place in Graz from July 7 to 12. Members of our institute actively participated in the conference and presented their current research work. David Weigl presented the contribution in the field of Music Performance Analysis (Jiang, Weigl and Goebl), while Tim Tarek Grund presented the research on "Cloud hands: Three Emanations of a Touchless Musical Assemblage" (Grund and Hofmann).
photo by Stephan Polzer/mdw
MAPPER Symposium at IWK
10.07.2025
The MAPPER – A Symposium on Music Acoustics for Performance Preparation and the Engagement with Repertoire in Live-Electronics, which took place on 1st and 2nd July at mdw Vienna, brought together artists, academics and technicians from Asia, South America, Europe, Africa, and Australia. During the symposium, 15 lecture-performances were presented, addressing topics such as music acoustics, new interfaces for musical expression, engagement with repertoire, and cross-cultural collaborations in the context of live electronics. The interdisciplinary nature of the programme fostered valuable discussions and highlighted innovative developments at the intersection of research, technology, and art.
©shutterstock / Hybrid Graphics, edited by mdw
IWK is organising the first MAPPER Symposium
26.06.2025
The Department of Music Acoustics – Wiener Klangstil is organising the first MAPPER – A Symposium on Music Acoustics for Performance Preparation and the Engagement with Repertoire in Live-Electronics. The symposium will take place at the mdw campus in the Soundtheatre (Future Art Lab) on 1st and 2nd July 2025. Bringing together experts from Asia, South America, Europe and Africa, the symposium will facilitate knowledge exchange through a variety of lecture-performances, group discussions and live presentations.
photo by A. Mayer/IWK
End of semester 2025
25.06.2025
The Department of Music Acoustics – Wiener Klangstil can look back on a successful academic year 2024/25. All of the Department's teaching staff had a lot of fun introducing our students to topics from the field of music acoustics in a wide variety of courses. This was also the case in the course "Musikwissenschaftliches Praktikum", in which the students programmed our industrial robot to play some notes on a guitar (here is a brief insight).
We wish all students a relaxing summer and look forward to the next academic year!
Participation at Forum Acusticum 2025
25.06.2025
The 11th Convention of the European Acoustics Association, Forum Acusticum Euronoise 2025, was held in Málaga from June 23 to June 26, 2025. The event brought together experts in acoustics from across Europe to share the latest research and developments in the field. Our department members Montserrat Pàmies-Vilà, Paul Amann and Vasileios Chatziioannou actively participated in the convention, presenting their current research focusing on the role of acoustics in music education and the acoustical impact of mouthpieces on brass wind instruments.