The GEO project

The GEO project (Galata Electroacoustic Orchestra) is inspired by the historical relations between Genova and Istanbul. The general objectives of GEO IP were: 1) to found the Galata Electroacoustic Orchestra, based on the idea of live collective composition; 2) to merge of the Western Classical tradition of score-based music and the improvisational techniques, in particular of Turkish Maqam Music.
Since the beginning of the 20th century the extra-European music and the traditional folk music become a true source of inspiration for Western composers. GEO tried to overcome this deficiency with a multidisciplinary didactical approach to the specific subject and to his current potential, thanks to the support by new technologies.
The main aim was to create a “dialogue” among digital and traditional instruments and performance practices. According to our opinion the conceptual and technological tools of the Electroacoustic Music – a truly new musical language based on the idea “to compose THE sounds, not only WITH the sounds” – are fit for creating a contiguity and a linguistic penetration to let ideas and new experiences spring into action.
The GEO IP activities were divided in Lectures, Workshops and Laboratories. With the idea to melt different cultural and musical instruments (2 acoustic, 2 laptops), 8 different groups with 4 students each have been created during the workshops.
For the concert, titled Compasso da navegare, we adopted as a guide metaphor for collective composition the sealing map (portolano): when a ship docks, the goods – in our case: the musical products – from one country are unloaded and goods from another country are loaded.
The learning outcomes achieved are mainly related to the acquisition of skills and abilities in the following disciplinary areas: theoretic, ethnomusicological, technological, performing and compositional.
The main outputs of the GEO IP project are:
- Compasso da navegare, a concert by the Galata Electroacustic Orchestra, performed in 2013  in Genova old harbour and in 2014 at La Biennale di Venezia Music Festival (for that concert GEO got a 2015 Premio Abbiati, the Italian Critics’ Award).
- a booklet and a documentary DVD on the IP experience.
GEO is a Lifelong Learning Programme IP n° 2012-1-IT2-ERA10-38878
Coordinator Conservatorio Statale di Musica "Niccolò Paganini" di Genova Partners Istanbul Bilgi Üniversitesi, Istanbul Teknik Üniversitesi, Universitat Pompeu Fabra - Barcelona, Conservatorio Statale di Musica "G. Pierluigi da Palestrina" di Cagliari.