Hello!
I’m Ian Clester. Computers are fun (now more than ever!), and I’m broadly interested in lively computation: programs and processes you can play with. These days, I’m building Tilde at NoneType with Ash Vinay: a collaborative, flexible, and fun environment for working with sound and computation.
Before that, I did a PhD in Music Technology at Georgia Tech, advised by Jason Freeman. My research focused on computational music — music which is represented as a program rather than a fixed score or recording — and its implications. (This idea is related to process, aleatoric, and generative music.) Other interests include HCI and programming languages.
Before Georgia Tech, I did a Master’s in EECS at MIT (in Signal Kinetics), and before that my undergrad in EECS and Music. Along the way, I interned at various places, including Harmonix, Google, and Astranis, and did a little work for the Folk folks. Before all that, I thought computers were cool and music was magic. And I still do.
Here you can find information about my research and personal projects, plus contact info, and even a few blog posts. You can also find some of my software that runs in the browser, such as kilobeat, Alternator, and ScoreCard.
Recent News
- Oct 2026: Emma and I presented our GAIN challenge entry at Computation + Journalism 2026 (slides).
- Aug 2026: Emma Bingham and I won first place in the GAIN Agentic AI Investigative Journalism Challenge (code).
- Jun 2026: Ash and I ran a workshop on Tilde at NIME 2026 in London. I also chaired a paper session on creative coding.
- Apr 2026: Defended my dissertation at Georgia Tech.
- Nov 2025: At WAC 2025 in Paris, gave a talk on reconciling Web Audio with native audio and performed Garden Party.