For a composer trying to work within the studio paradigm, writing for a performer can be a procedural dilemma. The process can become split between two disparate tasks, one primarily aural, using the computer music studio to explore and realize sound through listening, and one visual, using graphical tools to convey aural concepts to a performer, while imagining sounds that are not actually present (as acoustic objects).

This can be addressed by synthetic representations of orchestral parts, sampling performed parts of the score and using them in the studio as guides, or even bringing performers into the studio to play and record the parts being explored.

These do work, and have proved to be an effective way to write, in a concrète manner, for traditional instruments.
However, they are primarily devices to convey aural messages in a non-aural manner.

Appropriate Technology