Katrina Hu – Looking Outwards – 10

The Computer Orchestra

The Computer Orchestra is an interactive installation consisting of multiple computers. It was created by Laura Perrenoud, Simon De Diesbach, and Jonas LaCôte in 2013. Its setup closely resembles that of a classical orchestra. This orchestra allows the user to conduct using the movements of their hands. Movements are recognized with a Kinect motion controller connected to a central computer. This then gives instructions to a multitude of screens. The screens then send both sounds and visual representations of the sounds back. Now, there are entire music sets created with this Computer Orchestra.

I admire how this project keeps many of the similarities of a classical orchestra. The “conductor’s” movements are like that of a real conductor, and the way the screens are set up resemble that of a real orchestra. There is not much information about the algorithms that generated the work, but the software used includes SimpleOpenNi and Ableton Live.