Cooperative mechanisms for networked music

One potential convergency of Web-based systems for social activities and music making is the field of networked music. This paper presents the main characteristics and discusses the rationale for the cooperative mechanisms implemented in CODES, a Web-based networked music environment designed to provide support for Cooperative Music Prototyping (CMP) by novices in music. The cooperative mechanisms of CODES were specifically designed and built in order to support a dynamic and creative environment, enabling knowledge sharing by means of rich interaction and argumentation mechanisms associated with the evolution of Music Prototypes (MPs), allowing any user to identify and understand others’ contributions, besides preserving each creator’s original ideas, intentions and authorship. A brief description of CODES and its original concept of “music prototyping” is initially presented, characterizing this activity as a particular kind of design. The essential concepts and descriptions of CODES cooperative mechanisms are then described, illustrating how they increase awareness of other users and their intentions in the context of group activities for music prototype design.