The Commodore 64: Programming as performance?

In the previous video step, we heard Rob Hubbard describe how his workflow adapted to suit writing music in code on the Commodore 64.

He described how programming and the hardware were the most important aspects of his workflow, and that he found the high level of control that this gave him really exciting. But he also described the process of actually coding the music as both tedious and difficult. And yet, despite that, he still found a way to make it performative and relate his programming practice back to his music-making.

There’s a definite tension here, and so in the comments section below, I’d like to hear your thoughts on what the challenges and opportunities might be from having technology determine your workflow and approach. Might it, for example, give you new perspectives on music, or might you become so distracted by figuring out how to do something that you lose sight of the bigger picture?