Geoffrey Blake Matters

EDUCATION

B.S. in Engineering, California Institute of Technology (expected 2008)
I am currently on leave from studying Computer Science at Caltech. As there is no Computer Science major, my diploma will be in Engineering and Applied Science.

High School Diploma, Lodi High School, Lodi CA (1995)

WORK EXPERIENCE

Audio Technology and Software Development, Rahsaan / MH2O (2001-present)
I have developed software to provide interactive music and entertainment services both over the phone and on mobile phone handsets. An interactive music messaging service has been piloted in Europe. Several of my software programs are currently offered by major US carriers, include "Name That Tune!", mobile karaoke, and ringtone composing software.

Lab Programmer, Caltech Paleomagnetics Laboratory (1999-2000)
I developed software which automates procedures and tests in the Caltech Paleomag Lab. The software controls stepping motors to position, load, and test the magnetic properties of rock samples. The lab is performing research in the fields of geo-magnetism and geo-biology, including pole reversal datings, true polar wander, and possible signs of life in martian meteorites.

Shift Manager, Caltech Coffeehouse (1996-1998)
I worked at the student coffeehouse one or two nights a week, off and on for several years. I was in charge of setting up the equipment at the beginning of the night, and in charge of the register, balancing the money at the end of the night, and in supervising the one or two waiters who worked under me.

CS2 TA, Caltech Computer Science Department (1997)
During the second term of the 96-97 school year, I was employed as a TA for cs2, one of the undergraduate computer science courses at Caltech. A partner and I gave short lectures to ~12-15 students, and helped them with their programming labs. We also graded their labs and homework every week. The course covered data structures in C and introductory C++, such as using classes to implement some familiar data structures.

Waiter, Caltech Coffeehouse (1995-1996)
Worked weekly at the student coffehouse. Duties included preparing food and cleaning up after closing.

Ice Factory Worker, Super Store Industries, Ice Division (1995-1996)
For two summers I worked in an ice production plant. I carried and stacked bags and blocks of ice, drove tugs and pallet jacks to move carts and pallets of ice, and performed rudimentary maintainence on the machines (such as changing the rolls of plastic used for bags, changing the date stamp, etc.)

ART EXPERIENCE

Music and Video for Dance (2003-present)
Composed and performed live audio and/or video for mech[a], deadmandancing, Live Processing, and Dance Without Body by the company Dance Kumikokimoto. Performed audio and/or video for various dance-related events including Public Sleep/Sleepover in 2004 and 2005. Received a commission from The American Music Center and grants from Experimental Television Center and Meet The Composer. Pieces which Geoff worked on were awarded a Bessie New York Performing Arts Award.

Share Multimedia Open Jam (2001-present)
In 2001, founded Share open jam for multimedia artists. Share has organized hundreds of weekly jam sessions for artists working in various mediums, as well as special events in NYC, Montreal, Bordeaux, and Berlin.

Electronic Music Performance (1998-present)
In 1998, started development of GDAM, one of the first digital DJ-mixing software applications. Launched Lance Blisters, groundbreaking multimedia band. Performed hundreds of live and digital DJ sets in the US and Europe.

Vocal and Instrumental Music Performance (childhood-present)
Since childhood, sang in church and school choirs, parts in several local opera and theater productions, played with several rock bands.

OTHER RESPONSIBILITIES

President, Dabney House (elected position) (1997-1998)
At 1997's house elections, I was elected President of Dabney. Dabney House is one of the undergraduate houses at Caltech. My duties included attending weekly meetings with the other House presidents, dealing with concerns and problems within the House, and representing Dabney in various commitee meetings and administrative meetings.

Social Vice President, Dabney House (1996-1997)
A friend and I shared this office from the beginning of the 96-97 school year. We were in charge of organizing and orchestrating all House social events. This included buying food, setting up band equipment, and organizing the annual Pumpkin Drop.

SKILLS

Programming
I have been studying Computer Science since the beginning of my freshman year at Caltech. I have used C, C++, Perl, Java, Lisp, April, Prolog, and Visual Basic for school and work. I am comfortable with unix environments, and running linux has given me exposure to sytem administration. In addition, I am familiar with the Windows and OSX operating systems. Classes I have taken include CS1 (introduction to sequential programming,) CS2 (data structure and problem-solving algorithms,) CS3 (parallel programming using multiple computers,) CS20abc (formal languages, computational geometry, analysis of algorithms, etc.,) and the new version of CS3, which now covers C++, classes, templates, and polymorphism rather than parallel programming. CS20 was my first introduction to formal, theoretical side of computing. I did a CS20 class project on modelling plants which was pretty neat. CS101 taught functional programming, logic programming, and multiagent systems. See also my mixing software, under the Music heading. Work experience in Software Engineering has balanced book learning with real-world situations - reverse-engineering binary data formats, designing client-server interfaces, and troubleshooting services post-launch.

Music
For longer than I can remember, I have loved music. I sang in church youth choir and our middle school chorus when I was younger, and during high school took up the bass guitar and then the 6-string. At Caltech, I performed and recorded with both a funk-rock and an art-rock band. Since 1998, I have been working on custom digital dj mixing and music production software. This software allows multiple mp3 (or other format) files to be played simultaneously, and the output streams are filtered and mixed together. Sound effects can be applied, the software helps coordinate alignment of the tracks. Although the original plan was to mimic the functionality of a set of dj turntables, we have developed effects and techniques which would be difficult or impossible to duplicate with standard dj equipment, and give the user unprecedented power to arrange and remix songs, all in real time. I have given many performances using this software, in the US and Europe. I am familiar with MIDI, and have designed custom user interfaces from toys and scientific equipment. Most recently my interests in novel music interfaces, software development, live performance, and audio-video correlation collided in the Lance Blisters project.