The increasing speed of technological development, the proliferation of means, works and styles as well as the development of more and more flexible and simpler tools begin to have an important impact everywhere. Computers are not only much smaller than in the 1960s but also much more accessible to the general public. In the musical world it now has a multiplicity of roles, being used to do sound synthesis, multitracking and analysis, to assist or execute compositional tasks, to synchronize equipment in performance (using MIDI as a rhythmic generator, for example), etc.

Inspired by the possibilities, artists explore and develop new modes of expression. In Québec, for example, thanks to the indefatigable devotion of such individuals as Marcelle Deschênes, alcides lanza, Kevin Austin, Yves Daoust, Francis Dhomont, etc., a “Montréal æsthetic” slowly begins to emerge. Jean Piché and others compose their first Computer Music works, while others, such as Bruce Pennycook or Alain Thibault, seek to create a sort of hybrid between traditional modes of performance and computer synthesis.

Electroacoustic music now has established presence in the Western world.