Instruments, Interactivity, and Inevitability

It is astonishing to think that a mere twenty years ago, real-time music production and performance was not only in a fledgling state with only primitive (such as the IRCAM 4X machine) or limited (like the Synclavier) capabilities, but was also the subject of very heated debate. At IRCAM in the early 1980's, for instance, some (such as Luciano Berio) questioned whether any digital technology could ever be truly "instrumental", while others (such as Jean-Claude Risset) doubted whether real-time activity of any sort would ever acquire the richness and introspection of composition.