Taking The live out of looping: composing with the loop pedal

Abstract

This chapter explores the potential of the loop pedal as a compositional aid. Isabel Novella, the Mozambican singer-songwriter, describes how the loop pedal has transformed her creative practice through providing a means of communicating her ideas as she composes new songs, allowing her greater autonomy.

The authors consider that the loop pedal may be an increasingly relevant means of developing agency among musicians through promoting non-traditional composition techniques rather than depending principally on notation and notation-based midi-input, for example. Given the gender imbalances frequently associated with music production and technology that both feature in the literature and mirror Isabel’s own experiences, the loop pedal might be a means of promoting more equal access to music technology and further developing musicians’ agency.