If you’re wondering what geniuses do in their downtime, the answer is apparently: start a laptop orchestra. With about a million awards between its founders and a MacArthur genius grant dedicated to the group all on its own, the Princeton Laptop Orchestra (or PLOrk) is something you have to see to believe. And in case you’re having flights of ProTools or GarageBand fancy, PLOrk isn’t a bunch of grad students having a laugh with iTunes shuffle settings—it’s a legit exploration into pushing how far the boundaries of technology and music can go. Not only has it sparked the interest of renowned performers and composers to collaborate, it’s even inspired similar groups to form all over the world. Since getting that many techies together in one place gets tricky, Sideband, the smaller, chamber-ensemble sized offshoot of PLOrk is playing at Roulette Intermedium this Thursday. Tickets are $15 and available here.
