Frap Tools: Modular Choreography with Jerome Begin – A Composer’s Patchwork for Dance

Jerome Begin’s musical trajectory is a patchwork of improvisation, classical training, and a healthy dose of serendipity. Growing up in Ohio, he began with piano lessons but found true inspiration in playing by ear and composing from a young age. His early exposure to improvisation—thanks to a musically inclined babysitter—set the stage for a lifelong fascination with making music outside the lines of traditional notation. As Begin moved through school bands and eventually into university, his curiosity led him from audio production into formal composition, always with a foot in both the acoustic and electronic worlds.

The transition into composing for dance was, by his own account, a series of happy accidents. Begin’s improvisational skills landed him a gig accompanying dance classes, which in turn opened doors to composing for choreographers and eventually led to his current role at Juilliard. What stands out in his narrative is the organic way in which modular synthesis entered his toolkit—not as a replacement for traditional instruments, but as a means to expand the dialogue between movement and sound. For Begin, modular isn’t just about sound design; it’s about creating systems that can respond to and shape the energy of live performance, especially in the context of choreography where the music must both support and interact with the dancers.

Begin’s modular setup for the Douglas Dunn dance piece is a study in both restraint and versatility. Rather than an endless sprawl of modules, he structures each section of the hour-long performance around specific tools, minimising repatching and maximising musical intent. The Kunis filter takes centre stage in the opening, where it’s rung via regular inputs to produce resonant, evolving tones—deliberately avoiding the bandpass output for a less overtly tonal character. Random triggers from Ableton, modulated in density via a clever LFO chain, bring the filter to life, while resonance sweeps introduce pitch-bending textures that interact with live violin.

The Usta sequencer, though a staple in Begin’s rack, is set aside for this project in favour of Ableton’s sequencing and effects, allowing for precise scene changes and automation that would be impractical by hand. Matrix mixers and Doepfer’s octal switch provide the routing flexibility needed to move between sections without a tangle of cables in the dark. Later, the modular patch expands to include the Morphagene for live violin sampling, Brenso for pitch-tracked synthesis, and a host of modulation sources—Pam’s Pro Workout, FALISTRI, and more—each mapped to specific musical gestures. Antenna controllers and attenuators allow real-time timbral shifts, while the modular voices are panned and layered for a dynamic, spatial soundscape that evolves with the choreography.

What’s striking is Begin’s focus on the modular as an instrument in itself. He describes building muscle memory for the patch, learning which attenuators to reach for and how to balance the interplay between hands-on control and automated processes. The modular isn’t just a source of sound but a responsive partner in the performance, capable of everything from subtle filter pings to frenetic arpeggios, all woven into the fabric of the dance.

The conversation closes with a look toward the future of modular synthesis, particularly the need for more expressive control interfaces and advanced CV generation. Begin praises Frap Tools’ philosophy of adding extra layers of functionality to even the simplest utilities, but notes that the next frontier lies in developing new ways to generate and morph control voltages in real time.

He envisions interfaces that go beyond proximity sensors or traditional controllers—tools that allow for multi-dimensional, gestural input and meta-control over the behaviour of other controllers. The challenge, as he sees it, is to create systems that are as responsive and nuanced as acoustic instruments, enabling performers to shape sound with the same immediacy and subtlety as a violinist or pianist. For modular musicians and manufacturers alike, the quest for new forms of expressiveness and interaction remains an open patch point, ripe for exploration.