Meet the Makers – MiLO (the Milwaukee Laptop Orchestra)
Tell us about yourself?
MiLO (the Milwaukee Laptop Orchestra) is an improvisation collective for live electronic music performance. Since 2007, the group has been a mixture of UWM faculty, students, alumni, and Milwaukee locals. Each member brings their own instruments to play, from home-brew software to home-built analog synthesizers.
What are you presenting at Maker Faire Milwaukee?
We’ll be performing a number of pieces that showcase our electronics. We’re all about creating tapestries of sound: exciting, ambient, noisy, and smooth. As part of the show, we’d like to grab some of the audience members to join in so they can experience playing these new instruments.
What inspires you to make?
All of the members of MiLO have their own connection to music, but based on their enthusiasm every time we rehearse, it has to be a passion for performing together.
Why do you consider yourself a Maker?
Every musician is a maker. The notes on the page aren’t music until a player makes them into music through performance.
What tips or advice would you give to someone who wants to become a Maker?
Why not design and build your own musical instrument? Every instrument was once just a crazy idea.
Tell us about one of your failed projects.
For a few years now, we wanted to play a 7 hour marathon concert set to a video of the Bergensbanen train ride through Norway. It’s a failure because we haven’t yet found the right venue and date for a 7 hour concert.
For more info check out the 2016 profile page for MiLO (the Milwaukee Laptop Orchestra).