cee history

The Canadian Electronic Ensemble was founded in 1971. It is the oldest continuous live-electronic group in the world.

Today we take synthesizers for granted. But when the CEE was founded, electronic music could only be heard on tape. The CEE developed a new medium: live electronic music. The synthesizers of the time were enormous and not meant for live performance. Often, the members of the CEE had to design and build their own instruments. Twenty years later, the CEE is still at the forefront of live electronic music.

The CEE first toured Canada in 1975. Its first European tour was in 1979. In the years since, the group has toured extensively throughout North America and Europe and has appeared with the Toronto Symphony, the Vancouver Symphony, the Ottawa Symphony Orchestra and the Orchestre Métropolitain de Montréal.

The CEE has presented its own Toronto concert series since 1974. This has become a major venue for new electroacoustic works by composers from Canada and abroad. The series has presented artists from every province in Canada, as well as international artists from Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, England, France, Italy, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, and the United States.

In addition, the CEE operates an electronic music studio facility in Toronto. This studio is made available to composers for the development of new electroacoustic works. Over the past 30 years, the CEE has aided the creation of over one hundred new compositions, most of which have been premiered by the CEE.