Month: September 2020

Looking Outwards -04 : Sound Art

Weather Thingy ECAL/Adrien Kaeser from ECAL on Vimeo.

One piece of art that stands at the intersection of sound and computation is “Weather Thingy” by Adrien Kaeser, created in 2018. This invention takes real time weather data input and converts it into computational data that varies the sound control of connected instruments. It consists of two main components, a weather station on a tripod microphone, and the custom built sound controller that’s connected to the weather station. The controller interface allows the device to assign the parameters received to different audio effects. What is inspiring to me about this piece is that it interprets data across different platforms – it used weather stimulation, such as rain collection or wind power, and is able to translate it into computational data, and then further reapply that to generate specific sounds. I think this is intriguing in its interdisciplinarity. The artist’s sensibilities come through in the way in which he assigns the different audio effects to the inputs – there is a distinct, ethereal quality in the noises produced.

LookingOutwards-04

The title of the work I chose to discuss is Soundmachines, Creative Sound Production Device 2011 and was made in collaboration with
producer Yannick Labbé. It consists of three discs, spinning similarly to vynil records. Each disc is encoded with different
arrangements of colors that correspond to individual tracks in Ableton Live, a digital audio workstation. I particularly enjoyed
this project because I am fascinated by analog synthesizers, a musical tool that relates deeply to programming. I also enjoy that
there is a degree of human interaction with the piece, where the user can shift the placement of the readers along the radius of
each disc to change the output.

youtube.com/watch?v=_gk9n-2lBb8

LO-04: Blue Jeans and Bloody Tears

Blue Jeans and Bloody Tears is an AI-generated eurovision song written by AI, sung by Izhar Cohen, produced by Avshalom Ariel, and published online by Sweaty Machines. The creators fed AI hundreds of eurovision song lyrics & melodies to a neural network, which then created thousands of lines, licks, melodies, beats, etc. From these a few elements were then carefully selected and “welded” together to create the final piece.

The project, amazingly, produced an eerily catchy song despite its nonsensical lyrics. Commenters even inferred deep meanings from the lyrics, despite the fact that they were generated at random. Through the insanity, the instincts of the producers for selecting the catchiest beats shines through in a song that makes you suspicious that maybe AI really is coming for all of our jobs after all.

-Robert

Project 04: String Art

I had a lot of difficulty coming up with this project but I’m pretty happy with how it turned out. I wasn’t sure of the syntax of combining an if statement and a loop and it took a few tries to get it how it is. Instead of just drawing a crack when an area is clicked on, the crack gets darker and darker the more you click on it and eventually the window “breaks” to show an orange sunset color.

window

var dx1;
var dy1;
var dx2;
var dy2;
var dx3
var dx4
var dx5
var dx6
var numLines = 24 ////builds the cracks
var numLines2 = 12
var numLines3 = 36
var shatterCount = 0  ////keeps track of the clicks until the window breaks


function setup() {
    createCanvas(300, 400);
    dx1 = (120 - 110 )/numLines;
    dy1 = (80 - 80)/numLines;
    dx2 = (150 - 50)/numLines;
    dy2 = (200 - 200)/numLines
    dx3 = (240 - 220) /numLines2
    dx4 = (250 - 150)/numLines2
    dx5 = (170 - 160)/numLines3
    dy5 = (260 - 240)/numLines3
    dx6 = (250 - 150)/numLines3

}
function draw() {
    rectMode(CENTER)
    background(0)
    fill(237, 160, 17)  ////window info
    rect(width / 2, height / 2, 150, 300)
    line(width / 2, 50, width / 2, 350)
    line(75, height / 2, 225, height / 2)
    noLoop()
    line(110, 80, 120, 80)
    line(220, 140, 240, 160)
    line(160, 240, 170, 260)
   
            
}

function mousePressed() {
    var x1 = 110
    
    var y1 = 80
    var x2 = 75
    var y2 = 200
    var x3 = 220
    var y3 = 140
    var x4 = 150
    var y4 = 200
    var x5 = 160
    var y5 = 240
    var x6 = 150
    var y6 = 200
    var brokenx1 = random(0, width)
    var brokeny1 = random(0, height)
    var brokenx2 = random(0, width)
    var brokeny2 = random(0, height)
    print(shatterCount)
    
       if (mouseX <= width / 2 & mouseY <= height / 2) { 
        
        for (var s = 0; s <= numLines; s += 1) {
            line(x1, y1, x2, y2)
            x1 += dx1;
            y1 += dy1;
            x2 += dx2;
            y2 += dy2; ////first crack
            
        } shatterCount = shatterCount + 1
    }
       if (mouseX >= width / 2 & mouseY <= height / 2) {
        
       for (var s = 0; s <= numLines; s += 1) {
            line(x3, y3, x4, y4)
            x3 += dx3;
            x4 += dx4; ////second crack along the middle pane
            
            } shatterCount = shatterCount + 1
        }
        if (mouseX >= width / 2 & mouseY >= height / 2) {
            
            for (var s = 0; s <= numLines; s += 1) {
            line(x5, y5, x6, y6)
            x5 += dx5
            y5 += dy5
            x6 += dx6; ////bottom crack along the middle pane
            
           } shatterCount = shatterCount + 1
        }
        
        if (shatterCount >= 12) {
            fill(237, 160, 17) ////what to do after the window "breaks"
            rect(width / 2, height / 2, width, height)
                
    }
}

Stringy Art (Project-04)

For this week’s project, string art, I wanted to make something that showed off how straight lines could form apparent curves. Given that, I decided the cleanest way to do that was with circles, which are both easy to code & visually simple. Four simple colors – red, blue, green, and yellow – diverge from what on the inner hemispheres, while the foreground circle remains in white.

-Robert

sketch
//Robert Rice
//Section C

function setup() {
    createCanvas(400, 300);
    background(0);
    angleMode(DEGREES);
}

angle = 0

function draw() {
    fill(255);
    strokeWeight(1);
    stroke(255);

    line(200, 0, 200, 300);

    push();
    translate(350, 150);    //changes the axis of rotation to the center of the "circle" formed by the lines
    for(let i = 1; i <= 45; i+=1) { //rotates the same line 2 degrees around the new axis of rotation, loops 45 times
        stroke(255-i*10, 255-i*10, 255);       
        rotate(2);                  //angle change per loop (this rotates 90 degrees, bc 2*45=90)
        line(-150, 0, -150, -150);  //the line being rotated each loop
    }
    pop();

    push();                 //the same code, except it arcs to the bottom right instead of the top right
    translate(350, 150);
    for(let i = 1; i <= 45; i+=1) {
        stroke(255-i*10, 255, 255-i*10);
        rotate(-2);
        line(-150, 0, -150, 150);
    }
    pop();

    push();                 //arcs towards the bottom left
    translate(50, 150);
    for(let i = 1; i <= 45; i+=1) {
        stroke(255, 255, 255-i*10);
        rotate(2);
        line(150, 0, 150, 150);
    }
    pop();

    push();                 //arcs towards the top left
    translate(50, 150);
    for(let i = 1; i <= 45; i+=1) {
        stroke(255, 255-i*10, 255-i*10);
        rotate(-2);
        line(150, 0, 150, -150);
    }
    pop();

    push(); //the final circle, with the origin at the center
    translate(200, 150);
    strokeWeight(2);
    for (let i = 1; i <= 180; i += 1) {
        rotate(2);
        line(-200, -150, 200, -150)
    }
    pop();

    noLoop();
}

LO-04: Sound Art

One piece I found particularly interesting was Keiko Uenishi’s LandFilles. It is a structure made out of recyclables, with an “instrument” made out of used plastic bottles that Uenishi moves to interact with the piece. An algorithm (she doesn’t describe it) then interprets her movements as though the bottles were a tube or resonance chamber to create sound, while a separate person uses video cameras, lights, and monitors to change the environment of the instrument. It’s a great example of how to find uses for anything, and I find the concept of natural resonance extremely interesting. It was fascinating to see how to algorithm read Uenishi’s movements with the structure of bottles to create these hollow, airy sounds. It also had an interesting range and tone, between a lower brass instrument such as a french horn, and the upper limits of a flute, while also incorporating piano-like sound as well. The program involved most likely follows something such as a set of sensors throughout the bottles, or a mapping program which follows their movement, then models a chamber for sound that is then played through speakers. It presents Uenishi’s personal views of the environment as conservation-focused, as the entire structure is built from recycled materials, and the sounds coming from the instrument aren’t your typical beautiful notes. It produces eerie, unsettling pitches that I can only see as a commentary on our treatment of the environment.

http://soundleak.org/works/landfilles

A small section of the audiovisual performance

Project 4 – String Art

sketch
//simple string art
//hollyl
//section d

var dx1;
var dy1;
var dx2;
var dy2;
var numLines = 25;

function setup(){
	createCanvas(400, 300);
	background(200);
	line(200, 25, 200, 125);
	line(217.67, 132.33, 288.38, 61.17);
	line(225, 150, 325, 150);
	line(217.67, 167.67, 288.38, 238.38);
	line(200, 175, 200, 275);
	line(182.33, 167.67, 111.62, 238.38);
	line(175, 150, 75, 150);
	line(182.33, 132.33, 111.62, 61.17);
	dx1 = (200 - 200)/numLines;
	dy1 = (125 - 25)/numLines;
	dx2 = (288.38 - 217.67)/numLines;
	dy2 = (61 - 132.33)/numLines;
	dx3 = (325 - 225)/numLines;
	dy3 = (150 - 150)/numLines;
	dx4 = (288.38 - 217.67)/numLines;
	dy4 = (238.38 - 167.67)/numLines;
	dx5 = (200 - 200)/numLines;
	dy5 = (275 - 175)/numLines;
	dx6 = (182.33 - 111.62)/numLines;
	dy6 = (238.38 - 167.67)/numLines;
	dx7 = (175 - 75)/numLines;
	dy7 = (150 - 150)/numLines;
	dx8 = (182.33 - 111.62)/numLines;
	dy8 = (132.33 - 61.17)/numLines;
}

function draw(){

	var x1 = 200;									//north-north-east
	var y1 = 25;
	var x2a = 217.67;
	var y2a = 132.33;
	for(var i = 0; i <= numLines; i += 1){
		line(x1, y1, x2a, y2a);
		x1 += dx1;
		y1 += dy1;
		x2a += dx2;
		y2a += dy2;
	}

	var x2b = 288.38;								//north-east-east
	var y2b = 61.17;
	var x3a = 225;
	var y3a = 150;
	for(var i = 0; i <= numLines; i += 1){
		line(x2b, y2b, x3a, y3a);
		x2b -= dx2;
		y2b -= dy2;
		x3a += dx3;
		y3a -= dy3;
	}

	var x3b = 325;									//south-east-east
	var y3b = 150;
	var x4a = 217.67;
	var y4a = 167.67;
	for (var i = 0; i <= numLines; i += 1){
		line(x3b, y3b, x4a, y4a);
		x3b -= dx3;
		y3b += dy3;
		x4a += dx4;
		y4a += dy4;
	}

	var x4b = 288.38;								//south-south-east
	var y4b = 238.38;
	var x5a = 200;
	var y5a = 175;
	for (var i = 0; i <= numLines; i += 1){
		line(x4b, y4b, x5a, y5a);
		x4b -= dx4;
		y4b -= dy4;
		x5a += dx5;
		y5a += dy5;
	}

	var x5b = 200;									//south-south-west
	var y5b = 275;
	var x6a = 182.33;
	var y6a = 167.67;
	for (var i = 0; i <=numLines; i += 1){			
		line(x5b, y5b, x6a, y6a);
		x5b += dx5;
		y5b -= dy5;
		x6a -= dx6;
		y6a += dy6;
	}

	var x6b = 111.62;								//south-west-west
	var y6b = 238.38;
	var x7a = 175;
	var y7a = 150;
	for (var i = 0; i <= numLines; i += 1){
		line(x6b, y6b, x7a, y7a);
		x6b += dx6;
		y6b -= dy6;
		x7a -= dx7;
		y7a += dy7;
	}

	var x7b = 75;									//north-west-west
	var y7b = 150;
	var x8a = 182.33;
	var y8a = 132.33;
	for (var i = 0; i <= numLines; i += 1){
		line(x7b, y7b, x8a, y8a);
		x7b += dx7;
		y7b += dy7;
		x8a -= dx8;
		y8a -= dy8;
	}

	var x8b = 111.62;								//north-north-west
	var y8b = 61.17;
	var x1b = 200;
	var y1b = 125;
	for (var i = 0; i <= numLines; i += 1){
		line(x8b, y8b, x1b, y1b);
		x8b += dx8;
		y8b += dy8;
		x1b += dx1;
		y1b -= dy1;
	}

	noLoop();
}

notes:

LO 4

I have decided to focus on is Christina Kubisch’s Cloud, once piece of the collection I was able to experience SFMOMA. Kubisch’s Cloud sculpture is a snarl of vivid red wires and cable ties suspended in the gallery space. Visitors experience the audio of the piece by wearing headphones that intercept the electromagnetic transmission from the piece, with each movement changing the audio that is transmitted. General areas have sound recorded from the same space but ultimately are still different sounds. In essence, the viewers become human mixers, moving around or turning their heads to create what they want to hear from Cloud, creating real-time compositions.

Kubisch’s Cloud project started in 2011, and the project has become even more sophisticated since then. The sounds of the Cloud are programmed into different sections of the physical Cloud, creating the interaction fo moving around the Cloud to experience different sounds.

LookingOutwards-04

Laetitia Sonami’s signature instrument, the Lady’s Glove, was particulary interesting to me. It is fitted with a vast array of sensors which track the motions of her dance, and those movements shape the music. It is very interesting and admirable that she takes the physical movements and process them digitally to generate the sound into the physical world again. It is very unconventional and innovative. The signals go through Sensorlab at STEIM Institute, and are mapped onto MAX-MSP software. Also, the mapping and sonic material changes in every composition. Signals control sound parameters and processes. They can also control motors, light bulbs, and video too. It is very interesting how intuitive body movement would result into digitally processed sound art.

Instruments – Lady’s Glove

Project-04-String-Art

I created a string art in which consists of lines that are sort of symmetric and floating lines according to the position of mouse.

sketch 

//Jae Son, Section C

function setup() {
    createCanvas(400, 300);
    background(220);
}

function draw() {
  background(55,40,39);
  for (var i  = 0;  i <= 250; i+=2){
    strokeWeight(1);
    //yellow line -left
    stroke(240,227,30);
    line(i*2, height, 0, 3*i);
    //purple line -left
    stroke(104,99,154);
    line(i*5, height, 0, 3*i);
    //pink line -left
    stroke(181,134,132);
    line(i*8, height, 0, 3*i);
    //yellow line -right
    stroke(240,227,30);
    line(width,i*2,3*i,0);
    //purple line -right
    stroke(104,99,154);
    line(width,i*5,3*i,0);
    //pink line -right
    stroke(181,134,132);
    line(width,i*8,3*i,0);
  }
  
  for (var i = 0; i <= 300; i++) {
    strokeWeight(0.5);
    //moving orange line
    stroke(249,211,140);
    line(mouseX,i*3,i*2,mouseY);
    //moving turquoise line
    stroke(148,224,226);
     line(i*3,mouseY,mouseX,i);
  }
  

  
}