Stewart Blackwood
Work Experience
Carnegie Mellon University, School of Drama, 2023 - Present
Assistant Professor of Composition and Sound Design
- Created and taught composition and coding courses focusing on creating sonic environments for live productions.
- Mentored MFA and BFA students through various levels of audio-focused artistic projects.
- Advising on career, thesis, and academic work for sound design-focused students.
Boomcloud360, 2022 – 2023
Audio Experience Engineer
- Created bespoke spectral audio analysis tools.
- Created production algorithms/platform tunings.
- Live demonstrations/presentations of next-gen technology.
- Created novel headphone-based spatial audio filter generation technology.
- Conducted and refined critical user acceptance tests for production releases.
Education
Master of Fine Arts – Sound Design for Theater & Dance, UC San Diego
Bachelor of Fine Arts – Sound Design & Technology, Kent State University
Theatre Sound Design
* Denotes Original Composition
^ Denotes Assistant Design Credit
Regional & Professional Theatre Sound Design
2024 Fatherland * - Manhatten Theatre Club, New York City, NY (Off-Broadway)
Directed By. Stephen Sachs
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2024 Dial M for Murder * - Pittsburgh Public Theatre, Pittsburgh, PA
Directed By. Celine Rosenthal
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2024 Lucky Chance - Island Shakespeare Festival
Directed By. Julie Beckman
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2024 Fatherland * - The Fountain Theatre, Los Angeles, CA
Directed By. Stephen Sachs
2021 Proof of Love * - Black Lives Black Words, Pittsburgh, PA
Directed By. Kyle Hayden
2020 La Cage - Cygnet Theatre, San Diego, CA
Directed By. Sean Murray
2019 Winter’s Tale * - Island Shakespeare Festival, Seattle, WA
Directed By. Kyle Hayden
2019 Midsummer Night’s Dream - Island Shakespeare Festival, Seattle, WA
Directed By. Jackie Apodaca
2018 Sweat ^ - Cleveland Play House, Outcalt Theatre, Cleveland, OH
Sound Design By. Jane Shaw
2018 Feed * - Cleveland Play House, Outcalt Theatre, Cleveland, OH
Directed By. Pamela DiPasquale
2018 Wild Fire and The Bird Scouts * - Cleveland Play House, Outcalt Theatre, Cleveland, OH
Directed By. Luke Brett
2018 Godspell Jr. - Cleveland Play House, Outcalt Theatre, Cleveland, OH
Directed By. Mariah Burkes
2018 Amazing Tale of The Backyard Adventure * - Hangar Theatre, Kiddstuff, Ithaca, NY
Directed By. Christopher Nunez
2018 The Transition of Doodle Pequeño * - Hangar Theatre, Kiddstuff, Ithaca, NY
Directed By. Kyle Hayden
2018 Death Comes to Us All, Mary Agnes - Hangar Theatre, The Wedge, Ithaca, NY
Directed By. Christopher Nunez
2018 A Brief History of America * - Hangar Theatre, The Wedge, Ithaca, NY
Directed By. Kyle Hayden
2018 Chicago ^ - Hangar Theatre, Mainstage, Ithaca, NY
Sound Design By. Josh Maywood
2018 Xanadu ^ - Hangar Theatre, Mainstage, Ithaca, NY
Sound Design By. Sean Hagerty
2018 Doll’s House pt.2 ^ - Hangar Theatre, Mainstage, Ithaca, NY
Sound Design By. Josh Maywood
2017 Pan-African Tales * - Hangar Theatre, The Wedge, Ithaca, NY
Directed By. Tameka Ellington
2017 Haunted School House and Lab * - Factory of Terror, Akron, OH
Project Manager. Liam Roth
2016 Women Beware Women * - Rubber City Theatre, Akron, OH
Directed By. Dane Leasure Roth
Composition for Theatre & Film
* Denotes Film
2024 The Hobbit - Pittsburgh Public Theatre, Pittsburgh, PA
Director By. Marya Sea Kaminski
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2024 September - New Language Productions, NYC, New York
Director By. Corey Atkins
2023 Catharsis - Maelstrom Collaborative Arts, Cleveland, OH
Choreographed By. Grace Wen
2023 Rise of The Bronze Dragon * - Kardos Animation, Cleveland, OH
Directed By. Nick Kardos
2021 Pia’s Wonderous Adventures in Txlandia* - UC San Diego, CalIT2 Ideas Grant, San Diego, OH
Directed By. Robert Castro
2019 Basement * - KSUIF, Cleveland, OH
Directed By. Rachel Ramras
2017 Intimate Apparel - Kent State University, Wright-Curtis Theatre, Kent, OH
Directed By. Fabio Polanco
2017 Khaye Faegal - Kent State University, Wright-Curtis Theatre, Kent, OH
Choreographed By. Jeffery Rockland
Multimedia, Interactivity, Software Development
Contrafactum- 2024
Developer, Sound Designer
For the International Computer Music Conference (ICMC) a group of sound design artists presented an AR sound art installation. It creates four AR sonic sculptures that surround the listener encouraging them to explore the virtual and physical space.
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59 ACRES– 2024 (In collaboration with La Jolla Playhouse and UCLA)
Developer & Technical Sound Designer
59 Acres is an extension of the 32 Acres and 200 Acres project. This is being produced for La Jolla Playhouse’s WOW festival. It is based on the framework developed throughout 32 and 200 acres. This iteration will incorporate a deeper sense of user decision into the geolocated sound process.
(Unity, FMOD, C#, Firebase)
200 ACRES– 2023 (In collaboration with Penn State and UCLA)
Developer & Technical Sound Designer
200 Acres is an extension of the 32 ACRES project done for Penn State. It is based on the framework developed throughout 32 acres. For this iteration, we integrated Firebase which allows for improved data ingestion, versioning, and asset updates.
(Unity, FMOD, C#, Firebase)
Audio FX Toolkit– 2022
Software Developer - Link
This is a software package for the Unity game engine written in C#. It allows for rapid audio effect prototyping. It does this by providing several useful DSP classes, example implementations, and extensive documentation. It is currently in use in the production software MAZETOOLS.
(C#, Unity, Doxygen)
Spaces, Between– 2022
Software Developer & Sound Designer
This is a piece created for the composer Lydia Brindamour. It involved writing a Max/MSP patch that amplified only the resonant harmonics of a piano as well as spatializing the quintet of string instruments to move around the room in a circle slowly. I used the VBIP spatialization algorithm and a ring of eight speakers encircling the audience. (Max/MSP, Javascript)
32 ACRES– 2021 (In collaboration with Center Theatre Group and UCLA)
Developer & Technical Sound Designer - Link
32 Acres is an app developed for the LA State Historic Park & presented by Center Theatre Group. It is a sound walk that tracks the user’s location to trigger audio playback. The experience was created/written by Marike Splint. The music and sound content were created by Jonathon Snipes. It was available on Google Play and the iOS App Store. (Unity, FMOD, C#)
Terra Firma– 2021
Developer, Co-Creator, Composer
Using AR software and printed images of tree seeds, the user was empowered to create an environment where the participant could wander through the forest of their creation. All the trees were from different times and places but held one thing in common; they are extinct. (Unity)
Epoch– 2021
Co-Creator, Composer, Sound Designer, Co-Video/Projections Design
A multimedia experience dedicated to the exploration of time. Using a combination of video effects exploring time, we invited the audience to experience an interactive art-making experience. We edited and distorted a reproduction of an image of the audience on multiple surfaces by recording their gestures in real time. It used live video feed, generative music, lighting, custom interactivity programming, and multiple projectors. (Max/MSP, Jitter, OBS)
Spatial Sound Suite– 2021
Developer & Programmer - Link
A suite of object-based spatial audio tools & algorithms implemented in Javascript, C++ (with JUCE), and Max/MSP. The equipment for this work was funded in part by the Norman Design Fund. (C++, JUCE Framework, Javascript, Max/MSP)
Little Anarchist– 2020
Developer & Programmer - Link
Little Anarchist is a cascading distortion audio plugin. It utilizes waveshaping, clip, and soft distortion techniques. Included is a one-pole filter that allows the user to choose which part of the audio signal they would like to distort. Free to the internet. (C++, JUCE Framework)
Reflected Voices – 2020
Lead Developer, Composer, Sound Designer, Programmer - Link
Reflected Voices is a virtual sound art installation. It was created and programmed in the Unity game engine. The audio was mixed and mastered in Ableton utilizing multichannel Binaural simulation. 3D Models were created in the program Blender. Presented in UC San Diego’s Fringe Lab Festival. (Unity, Blender)
The Visualizer – 2019
Developer & Programmer
The Visualizer is a Max for Live device that allows the user to create 3D, real-time, geometric video designs. It has the ability to react to sound, vary in size, change color, change shape, etc. Utilized as a part of R&D at Maelstrom Collaborative Arts. Free to the internet. (Max/MSP, Jitter, Ableton)
VFX Processor for Feed – 2019
Control Interface Design, Composer, Sound Designer
Created an Ableton-based, vocal-effect-processing control interface. It allowed the actors to affect their voices in real-time: pitch bending, delay/reverb, chorus, and DJ-style sound effects. Utilized at the Cleveland Playhouse. (Ableton)
Slow No Wake – 2018
Composer, Sound Designer, Control Interface Design
Created original soundscapes, field recordings, and music for an art piece in Maelstrom, Collaborative Art’s event Bricolage. A custom Ableton control interface was created for use in this project. (Max/MSP, Ableton)
Haunted School House and Laboratory – 2017
Composer, Sound Designer, Interactivity Designer
Designed a new sound system and composed original music for a nearly fifty-year-old haunted house. Eighty-four speakers were hung, and two hours of music were written for the theme park. (Arduino, Max/MSP)
Residencies & Related Experience
2023 DNA Festival 59 Acres, La Jolla Playhouse
2021 Maelstrom Collaborative Arts, Four Futures Artist: Rentism
2021 Maelstrom Collaborative Arts, Digital Performance R&D Cohort Member: Interactivity 2021
2021 Maelstrom Collaborative Arts, Digital Performance R&D Cohort Member: Presenting
2018 Hangar Theatre, Sound Design Fellow
2016–2018 Black Squirrel Radio, Technical Director
Selected Theatre Sound Engineering
* Denotes Live Mixing
2021 Beulah Rowley - New York City Workshop, New York City, OH
Directed By. Judith Dolan
2021 Theater Academy * - Cleveland Play House, Cleveland, OH
Production Manager By. Penny Zaletel
2019 Hay Fever - Cleveland Play House, Cleveland, OH
Production Manager By. Penny Zaletel
2018 Hi, Are You Single - Cleveland Play House, Cleveland, OH
Production Manager By. Penny Zaletel
2018 Newground Theatre Fest * - Cleveland Play House, Cleveland, OH
Production Manager By. Penny Zaletel
2018 Theatre Academy - Cleveland Play House, Cleveland, OH
Production Manager By. Penny Zaletel
Educational Theatre Sound Design
2021 Napoli Milionaria * - University of California San Diego, Potiker Theater, San Diego, CA
Directed By. Marco Barricelli
2021 51 Barrio! - University of California San Diego, Potiker Theater, San Diego, CA
Directed By. Patricia Huerta
2020 Sotoba Komachi * - University of California San Diego, Forum Theater, San Diego, CA
Directed By. Michelle Hyunh
2020 Heap * - University of California San Diego, Forum Theater, San Diego, CA
Directed By. Colette Roberts
2019 Ironbound- University of California San Diego, Arthur Wagner Theater, San Diego, CA
Directed By. Emilie Moler
2018 Man In Love ^ - University of California San Diego, Mandel-Wiess Theatre, San Diego, CA
Custom spatial audio programming was created for this production
Sound Design By. Maeann Ross
2018 Emilie *Kent State University, Wright-Curtis Theatre, Kent, OH
Directed By. Courtney Brown
2017 Hedda Gabler * Kent State University, Wright-Curtis Theatre, Kent, OH
Directed By. Corey Atkins
2017 Dance ’17 Mosaic * Kent State University, E. Turner Stump Theatre, Kent, OH
Directed By. Jeffery Rockland
2017 Little Women Kent State University, E. Turner Stump Theatre, Kent, OH
Directed By. Terri Kent
2016 Into The Woods * Kent State University, E. Turner Stump Theatre, Kent, OH
Directed By. Eric Van Baars
2016 Macbeth * Kent State University, Wright-Curtis Theatre, Kent, OH
Directed By. Fabio Polanco
2015 The Tell-Tale Heart Kent State University, Erdmann-Zucchero Black Box, Kent, OH
Directed By. David Holland
2015 Omega Man Kent State University, Erdmann-Zucchero Black Box, Kent, OH
Directed By. Hannah Graham
2015 Dance ’15 Moving Parts Kent State University, Wright Curtis Theatre, Kent, OH
Directed By. Joan Meggit
2014 New Works Festival Kent State University, Erdmann-Zucchero Black Box, Kent, OH
Directed By. Danny O’Donnell
2014 Woodsman Kent State University, Erdmann-Zucchero Black Box, Kent, OH
Directed By. Jeremie Newcomb
Academic Papers & Grants
2021 Master’s Thesis – A Methodology for Creating Theatrical Spatial Sound Experiences
2020 Norman Design Recipient – Creating Tools for Spatial Audio Trajectories
202 USITT Sound Commission – Creating MIDI Instruments for Use in Live Theater
2019 GSA Travel Grant UCSD
2016 KSU Flash Grant Recipient: Macbeth, 2016
Professional Affiliations
2019–2024 Audio Engineering Society Member
2019–2024 Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in United States Member
2018–2024 Theatrical Sound Design and Composers Association Member
Teaching Experience
COURSES TAUGHT
2023 - Present, Carnegie Mellon University - Assistant Professor
Introduction to Sound Design
Sound Design for Non-Linear & Interactive Storytelling
Composition for Theatrical Sound Design 2
Coding and Control for Theatrical Sound Design
Composition for Theatrical Sound Design 1
Production Prep
Sound Forum
2019 - 2021, University of California San Diego - Teaching Assistant
Sound Design Practicum
Introduction to Theatre Design
Great Performances on Film
Introduction to Theater
STUDENT SUPERVISION
2024 Advisor, Pan-Pan Gou, Passage
Helen Wayne Rauh Theatre, Carnegie Mellon University
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2023 Advisor, Ray Kathryn Morgen, Lear
Helen Wayne Rauh Theatre, Carnegie Mellon University
2021 Advisor, Stephen Lightfoot, Task Manager’s Normal Day
Honor’s Thesis, University of California San Diego
2020 Advisor, Kate Mcleod, MSG
Online due to COVID-19, University of California San Diego
2020 Advisor, Various Students, New Directions
Online due to COVID-19, University of California San Diego
2020 Advisor, Hailey Brown, Mr. Burns
Online due to COVID-19, University of California San Diego
2018 Advisor, Raigan Williams, Seussical Jr.
Main Stage, Hangar Theatre
2016-2018 Advisor, Various Students, Black Squirrel Radio Podcasts
Online, Black Squirrel Radio
GUEST LECTURES & WORKSHOPS
University of California San Diego
2023 Graduate Design Student Seminar
2021 World Building in Unity Workshop Pt. 1 & 2
Kent State University
2017 Lighting & Sound Practicum
2016 - 2018 Audio Editing for Podcasts Workshop