Music is deeply tied up with motion; seeing that in a machine is somehow satisfying. Soundmachines, from the enigmatically-titled Berlin studio TheProduct*, is an interactive physical installation made from optical turntables. By moving the “tone arm” – really in this case an optical sensor attached to an extended mount – you can change rhythms and sound sweeps.

We’ve naturally seen many visualizations, tangible and digital, that make loops into wheels. But it’s worth noting the particular connection to a kinetic experiment by The Books’ Nick Zammuto from the film earlier this week. In fact, my one criticism of this piece is that the rhythms are so regular. Some syncopation in a machine like this would be not only pleasing, but immediately visible to the eye and therefore understandable. Perhaps even decoupling the wheels from the motor could allow a user to experiment with sound. That doesn’t mean you have to go from minimal techno to irregular chaos, but there’s quite a lot in between.

That’s not to take away from the impact of this piece, and in particular, the beauty of its installation. The presentation in an iconic object is a message in itself. And the circle remains the ideal design for a looped rhythm, embedded as it is in the repetition we perceive in our world.

http://www.the-product.org/soundmachines

More details:

Three units, which are resembling standard record players, translate concentric visual patterns into control signals for further processing in any music software. The rotation of the discs, each holding three tracks, can be synced to a sequencer.
The Soundmachines premiered on the Volkswagen New Beetle stand at the IAA motor show in late Summer 2011. In cooperation with the sounddesigner/producer Yannick Labbé of TRICKSKI fame, we developed three unique discs, each controlling one track of an Ableton Live Set exclusively made for the Event. The show was supported by a set of realtime generated visuals, running on a 25m wide LED wall.


One/One oneone-studio.com
TheProduct* the-product.org

Client

Volkswagen

Agency

Vok Dams, Hamburg

Sounddesign/Producer IAA
Yannick Labbé yannicklabbe.com

Special Thanks

Matt Karau
 matt.karau.com
Andreas Schmelas invertednothing.com

(See also a compelling-looking visual collage. It’s supposed to be set to John Cage’s “First Interlude,” but because of copyright concerns, is instead (arguably) set to Cage’s 4’33″. Let’s hope they don’t get sued for that.

Perhaps channeling ancient cults of Pythagoras, the producer duo Kompal, based in Austria, have not only made an insane noise machine powered by light, but also ask you to hunt for triangles. Yes, the shape. Instead of a remix contest or photo contest or “like our Facebook page” business, they want you to take pictures of polygons.

First, about that sound-and-light-and-noise thing that will scare your friends. It is “a unique soundmachine controlled by light, containing controllable flashlights
as well as an optical filter, loudspeakers, an audio output and a hall effect drive. And last but not least the red “turbo button”.”

It isn’t entirely unique, in that it recalls designs like Bleep Labs’ Thinamagoop and the classic STEIM cracklebox, among others, but it is a lot bigger and more frightening. (I know at least one person trying to carry something like this through 9/11 security in NYC yesterday, and am curious how that went.)

The good news: you can win this:

Win the Kompalisator!
The Kompal producers Bernhard Belej and Jodok Dietrich have started a
galactic photo contest themed “Kompalisiere your world”. Those who
would like to join the contest should keep their eyes wide open and be
after any kind of triangle. Take a picture, upload it on Kompal fb or
www.kompal.eu and hope for plenty of user ratings. The pictures could
also be sent via mail to meinewelt@kompal.eu. A jury will choose the
winner of the fantastic “Kompalisator” out of the ten pictures
that got the most likes on September 30.

For more information about Kompal, their music and live shows visit
www.kompal.eu
YOUTUBE: http://youtu.be/AknizoL7zZY
Photos: http://gallery.me.com/bernhard.be#100144
“KOMPALISATOR”: http://kompal.eu/kompalisator.php
http://kompal.eu/kompalisator-postcards.pdf

Their music is actually rather lovely, not the mayhem of this particular box – think dreamy and slick, if thoroughly technological, sparkling and then adding in amiable beats and bass.

And full of triangles. A nicely-built, silly video, and some tracks:

Latest tracks by Kompal

Memo to music software developers, artists and labels distributing music, and anyone else who uses optical drives: stop assuming they’ll always be there, because they won’t. Talking points:

• Netbooks and tablets already lack optical drives. With more mobile devices, they’re unlikely to be alone.
• Next up: laptops. Many laptops over the years have put optical drives in removable drive bays or shipped as external options to shed weight and bulk. HP Envy models recently came with external drives. And now, it’s a sure bet that Apple will drop optical drives on at least some MacBook Pros, as it did on the Air.
• If you’re selling paid software, customers do sometimes lose your discs (or they’re on the road without access to them.)
• If you’re sending music promos, the accessibility and manageability of digital may be essential. And you don’t want someone to fail to listen to a record just because they didn’t plug in their MacBook optical dongle.
• At gigs (see lament below) be ready with some … I don’t know, QRCodes? (QRCodes on t-shirts!) Anıl Çamcı has a nice idea – print QRCodes on the physical CD, get the best of both worlds. (Suppose that works for vinyl, too; your laptop doesn’t have an LP slot.)
• Yes, I also hope USB stick prices plummet. Until then…

I really love CDs and my occasional Netflix DVD and other optical distribution. But the writing’s on the wall here.

I don’t think that this will force Mac developers into Apple’s Store. Many pro software developers are unlikely to want to play along with all of Apple’s approval rules; some already have digital distribution. (It ain’t rocket science.) There are reasons they might consider that store, and this decision could help give Apple some momentum, but unlike on iOS, distribution through such a store is non-exclusive and likely to remain that way. That means that the presence of a particular drive does little to change the existing pros and cons of this and other stores. If you liked them before, you like them now; if not, you still don’t.

There’s a technology for loading content, code and music, tools and visuals onto a computer without shiny, plastic discs. It’s not called the Apple App Store. It’s called “The Internet.”

Nor do I think this means any major change – negative or positive – in regards to DRM.

In fact, expect an uptick in the use of USB sticks and other larger storage. That already had begun with massive sample libraries that number the hundreds of gigs. It’s a no-brainer for other large content, too. That’ll just have to square with another trend, however – solid state drives pulling average internal storage size lower and costs higher, at least in the immediate term.

One very big negative: physical handouts at shows. CDs are still far cheaper to reproduce (by an order of magnitude) than are USB sticks. Then again, maybe music lovers will keep that (now external) drive handy.

As a user, it’s worth not reading too much into this. My hope is that the internal drive bays remain, but are simply either available for upgrade or have a different drive in them. That means additional storage and customization configurations, one likely being optical drives if you want them. External drive options will also most certainly be available. And I hardly expect this to happen across the board all at once – particularly on the PC side, where there’s more model diversity.

Keeping optical drives around will remain a fantastic way to watch videos – particularly on the superior Blu-Ray format – and CDs aren’t going anywhere in a hurry.

Having online access to software you’ve purchased, though, is a no-brainer, and by no means requires an Apple-specific (or any other) store.

Watching the bleeding edge of new musical instruments often means having to see new designs in tech demos, in proof-of-concept experiments as artists first try their hands on a new object. If you can use some imagination and see potential, that’s fine, but it’s a bit unfair to the instrument – you don’t get to see it really exploited musically.

Here’s a case that’s different: Jo Hamilton, an acclaimed up-and-coming artist from the UK, is really integrating the new AirPiano into her performance. Nor is she waiting for production: she’s got the only prototype outside of Berlin.

We saw the AirPiano in 2008; it’s the creation of Omer Yosha, an FH Potsdam interface design student. Drawing on the optical Theremin and the key layout of the Tannerin, the AirPiano creates a matrix of infrared sensors so that the keys are played in a volume of air above the instrument. (That’s a two-dimensional pitch layout, projected into the space above the instrument, as opposed to the one-dimensional projection of the Theremin.)

Here, Jo demonstrates how the instrument works (top), and also shows off her musical use in a video (which evidently suggests the AirPiano is a good choice if you’re playing in the forest). It’s quite lovely, and it’s nice to see a design in a musical context. She’s playing this instrument not only in this video, but in live gigs.

Who’s Jo Hamilton? From her press release:

Stemming from a nomadic family with roots in both Kenya and Jamaica, Jo Hamilton was brought up in a house two miles from the nearest neighbour in the wilds of northern Scotland. Her parents moved constantly in her youth, which saw her spending periods in Turkey, UAE, Kuwait, Sri Lanka and Cambodia.
Jo’s debut album Gown was produced by Jon Cotton (producer of Scott Matthew’s Ivor Novello Award-winning debut album) in her current hometown of Birmingham, and has received a sweeping range of
accolades including 3 awards at London’s recent Recharged Radio awards and a tip from US tastemaker/DJ Nic Harcourt as one of his picks for 2010.

If you’d like to know more about her music or you have questions about playing the instrument, I’ll follow up.

http://airpiano.de/
Jo pioneers new instrument – video out now! [johamilton.com]

Artists Gijs Gieskes’ sequencers are almost like physical, mechanical software, an expression of musical structure in object form. As such, even as they make strange sounds, they become musical sculpture. His latest Servo Sequencer combines optical and mechanical process, as frequency circles spin on a turntable and tone arms float above them.

The Servo Sequencer is built for exhibition use – meaning, yes, he’s brave enough to let you play with this contraption. Sequence the arms using buttons, then adjust the volume mix and placement of each arm using the joystick.

Serv Seq from Gijs on Vimeo.

This project is unusually well-documented. Gijs provides complete specs, the script that controls the arms, and even a little web app that generates those lovely patterns.

http://gieskes.nl/instruments/?file=serv-seq

But for those of you near the Netherlands, you should go check this out in person. Updated: The piece will be part of an exhibition in Breda through August 23, with multiple opening events featuring local artists from Eindhoven and Breda, plus live performances and concerts including Gijs and his talented brethren and neighbors.

Here & There Exhibition, mu.nl [Info in English]

The events:
Opening Part 1:
KOP, Breda
Thursday 25/06 08.00 pm

MU, Eindhoven
Friday 26/06 08.00 pm

(It’s a bit confusing as the events swap between Breda and Eindhoven — there’s a second opening Saturday July 25. Gijs explains “the first [opening] is in breda (thursday), then a day later (friday) in eindhoven, where my machine will be. and then a month later its the other way around.”)

You know, Breda. Like, right … here. We’ve got a number of readers in the area (whom I suspect know more or less exactly where this is); let us know if you make it!

Cast your shadow, shine a light, make a square wave synth make noise.

Michael Una is at it again. This time, he’s created something called the Beep-It. It’s a wonderfully elegant design for a light-controller soundmaker, an optical Theremin. He describes it to CDM thusly:

This minimalist electronic musical instrument eschews esoteric interface in favor of intuitive, expressive control.  One button turns the device on or off, which can produce a continuous tone or a rhythmic sequence.  One sensor varies pitch of the output waveform in response to ambient light.  The resulting system encourages playfulness and body movement.

You can buy all this goodness in hand-built, signed form for US$25 from Mike’s Etsy store, and he’s made the whole project open-source.

Beep-It @ Etsy

If you’re luck enough to be in Chicago, Michael is part of an art show called “Electrify” with more of these sorts of creations. You can buy your own Beep-It from the man himself, while soaking up the live musical stylings of Moment Sound. Electricity isn’t just for electronics: these artists will interpret the theme in the form of “painting, photography, sculpture, stencil, collage, and video.”

Electrify, November 15 @ Deadline Projects (Saturday 6-11p)

Schematics, images, explanation

Straight out of Michael’s notebook / brain:

There’s a massive misconception of digital formats, that somehow if something’s digital it’ll last forever in a pristine state. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth: because digital formats are so intolerant of any error, they’re actually more susceptible to physical harm than analog formats. (If you don’t believe me, compare a vinyl LP with some scratches on it to a CD with a single scratch.)

Now, the question is, how dedicated are you to proper care and feeding of your discs? Enough to care whether you’re handling your CDs and Blu-ray discs according to an internationally-recognized standard published by the International Organization for Standardization (better known as ISO … not IOS)? Got 108 Swiss francs burning a hole in your pocket and want some unusually dry bedside reading?

ISO 18938:2008 addresses the issues of physical integrity of the medium necessary to preserve access to the recorded data. These include:

• use and handling environments, including pollutants, temperature and humidity and light exposure
• contamination concerns
• inspection
• cleaning and maintenance, including cleaning methods and frequency
• transportation
• disasters, including water, fire, construction and post-disaster procedures
• staff training

I kid, of course – I imagine there could be some utility to this document for people who depend on optical storage and want this sort of official document. I will say, though, ISO – any thought of releasing a free executive summary for everyone else?

New ISO standard gives recommendations for care of optical discs [iso.org]

Proper care and handling isn’t the only challenge facing optically-stored digital information. The materials from which discs are made don’t last forever. (They don’t bio-degrade, either, but what they will do is fatigue and age to the point that you can’t read the information on them or return them to the Earth, ashes to ashes style.)

So, I’m curious, optical experts out there? What do you recommend for care of optical discs? And for long-term archiving, what sort of options do people have?

We’re celebrating 48 hours of DIY stuff here as we get ready for Handmade Music tomorrow night in Brooklyn! Thingamagoops are the friendly, optical emitter antennaed electronic creatures. Whether your cat / significant other / fan base would describe them as a sweet-sounding instrument, they do make a lot of noise and look cute in the process. Optical sensors onboard mean you can reposition the lights for some fun.

They were fun to begin with. But in kit form, you’ve got even more good times as you assemble them / find an odd case to put them in.

The kits come with groovy labels, eyes and mouths a la Mr. Potato-Head (well, in sticker form), and all the knobs and parts and things you need to make it work. A kit will set you back US$55. If you can’t be bothered to find an enclosure but still want to have some assembly, the enclosure-included version is US$66.

ThingamaKIT Product Page

And for an example build not by the Bleep Labs folks, MAKE shows off the build process:

ThingamaKIT build photos [MAKE: Blog]

I hope we’ll see more of this kind of kit in muso land soon.

But here’s why appropriated enclosures are enviro-friendly and fun – from Flickr, an example of an enclosure rescued from an old desktop intercom by Bleep Labs creator Dr. Bleep.

Au Clair de la Lune [MP3]

The Edison recording worked more like phonograph recordings to follow; it was recorded on tin foil. But this recording was essentially optical — a phonautogram that recorded sound visually. There’s a terrific article at the New York Times:

Researchers Play Tune Recorded Before Edison (via … my Dad! Thanks, Dad!)

Anyone familiar with phonautogram technology, I’d love to hear from you. Historians in our midst, perhaps?

More historical oddities: How Francis Bacon predicted the recording studio in ‘New Atlantis’ in 1626 on Music thing

Updated: The original inventor didn’t get to hear his recording — it debuted in 2008. (And you think your record label takes a long time to release things.) The reason? The device could record, but couldn’t play back.

More on the technology involved, including a bizarre alternative using a dead person’s ear.