theoreticalplayground.co.uk : 2007 : January

Chaos Theory

by det on January 14th 2007 to audiovisual

A PC 64k intro by Conspiracy. It came second at Assembly 2006 to Fairlight‘s Dead Ringer entry.

Collection of Music Interface Projects

by det on January 13th 2007 to interfaces

The following post presents a collection of music interfaces that were originally posted in the theoreticalplayground forums.

The RGB Player comprises of a rotating surface upon which a user can place coloured objects. A scanner detects these objects and generates sound depending on the distance from the centre of the rotating surface.

The AudioCube project uses four cubes each referring to a different element of music: drums, bass, lead and strings. The sides of the cubes determines the sound of the element and their relative position on the surface controls the spatial localisation.

The MusicTable provides the musician with cards that can be arranged on the table surface. The specific arrangement of the cards determines the sounds produced.

The ScanJam consists of two scanners and a computer. Each scanner represents one bar of music and objects placed on the scanners result in sound depending on the objects colour, shape and vertical placement.

The synthstick was inspired by the theremin and stylophone. A strip of VHS videotape with some conductive plastic film above it act as a ribbon control and the pitch can be adjusted by making contact at different points along the strip.

The blockjam interface consists of 25 tangible blocks that can be arranged to create musical sequences. It enables multiple users to play and collaborate. Each block can be controlled using gestural input, click-able input and also have a visual display.

The sonic banana was developed by Eric Singer. It is a rubber tube with four bend sensors inside. As the tube is twisted and shaped by the performer the data is sent to MaxMSP to create both arpeggiator and harmonica based musical sequences.

The oroboro is a collaborative musical interface. It is operated by two musicians each using two paddle mechanisms: one is a hand orientation sensor and the other is a ‘haptic mirror’ informing the user what the other musician is doing.

The ISS cube is a tangible music interface which tracks the position of objects on a tabletop surface. Different types of sounds can be played by combining and positioning the objects in different ways.

The Continuum offers continuous control in three dimensions for each finger placed on the surface.

The lemur is a multitouch musical interface developed by Jazz Mutant.

Paul Hertz developed Orai/Kalos as an interface to control audio and visual events.

The Circular Optical Object Locator is a collaborative music interface. The position of objects on a rotating platter determine the music that is produced.

The Jamodrum is a collaborative music interface inspired by drum circles. The musicians are able to create music and also effect visual changes on the tabletop. The tabletop display is often used to present interactive games to encourage collaboration and interaction between the musicians.

Cubed is a project by Douglas Stanley which is a music interface in the form of a Rubik’s Cube. Each side of the cube uses a different instrument to play notes which are determined by the colours on the face. An online shockwave implementation can be found here.

The Manual Input Sessions interface generates sound in response to hand gestures.

Instant City combines a number of fields to create an interactive computer game, musical interface and light sculpture. One or more players are able to create buildings on a table surface using blocks which in addition determines the generated sound output.

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Metaphorazine Live

by det on January 08th 2007 to music

FILM2 performing Jeff Noon‘s Metaphorazine short story taken from his book Pixel Juice.

Here’s the extract from Pixel Juice:

Johnny takes Metaphorazine. Every clockwork day. Says it burns his house down, with a haircut made of wings. You could say he eats a problem. You could say he stokes his thrill. Every clingfilm evening, climb inside a little pill. Intoxicate the feelings. Play those skull-piano blues. Johnny takes Metaphorazine.

He’s a dog.

Lucy takes Simileum. That’s not half as bad. She’s only like a moon gone slithering, upside-down the sky. Like a tidal wave of perfume, like a spillage in the heart. With eyes stuck tight like envelopes, and posted like a teardrop. Like a syringe, of teardrops. Like a dripfeed aphrodisiac, swallowed like a Cadillac, Lucy takes Simileum.

She’s like a dog.

Graham takes Litotezol. Brain the size of particles, that cloud inside of parasites, that live inside the paradise of a pair of lice. He’s a surge of melted ice cream, when he makes love like a ghost. Sparkles like a graveyard, but never gets the urge, and then sings Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! like a turgid flatfoot dirge. Graham takes Litotezol.

He’s a small dog.

Josie takes Hyperbolehyde. Ten thousand every second. See her face go touch the sky, when she climbs that rollercoaster high. That mouth! Such bliss! All the planets and the satellites make their home inside her lips. It’s a four minute warning! Atomic tounge! Nitrokisserene! Josie takes Hyperbolehyde.

She’s a big dog.

Alanis takes Alliterene. It drags a deeper ditch. And all her dirty dealings display a debonair disdain. Her dynamo is dangerous, ditto her dusky dreams. Dummies devise diverse deluxe débâcles down dingy darkened detox driveways. Alanis takes Alliterene.

She’s a dead dog, ya dig?

Desmond takes Onomatopiates.

He’s a woof woof.

Sylvia takes Oxymorox. She’s got the teenage menopause. Gets her winter-sugar somersaults from sniffing non-stick glue. She wear’s the v-necked trousers, in the blind-eye looking glass. Does the amputated Tango, and then finds herself quite lost, in the new old English style! Sylvia takes Oxymorox.

She’s a cat dog.

But Johnny takes Metaphorazine. Look at those busted street lamp eyes, that midnight clockface of a smile. That corrugated tinflesh roof of a brow. The knife, fork and spoon of his fingers, the sheer umbrella of the man’s hairdo! The coldwater bedsit of his brain. He’s a fanfare of atoms, I tell you! And you know that last, exquisite mathematical formula rubbed off the blackboard before the long summer holidays begin? Well, that’s him. Speeding language through the veins, Johnny takes Metaphorazine.

He’s a real dog.