As a part of Red Bull Arts’ Monolith group show curated by Jessica Allie in October 2021, I was approached to contribute an installation along with three other local women artists for the last Red Bull show in this location.
I saw this as an opportunity to make one of my dreams come true and make an instrument designed around my own skills, using my own skills as a software developer.
As someone who isn’t musically inclined, but obsessed with music, I created an instrument that I could actually play using the tools I had. Inspired by the Moog Sub Phatty, I worked with Studio Radish to create a Raspberry Pi-powered cyberdeck / synthesizer.
Using Python, Philips Hue lights, and an existing library that scored every word in the English language for emotional connotation (positive vs negative), light, sound, and pitch are manipulated by the aggregate score of a user’s text to generate and manipulate a drone sound and light temperature for the space of the installation.
In collaboration with Studio Radish, who helped draft the files and CNC cut the materials, we crafted the Moog-inspired base for the cyberdeck using plywood, acrylic, and aluminum.
The hardware required for the synthesizer itself included a 3.5″ screen, a Raspberry Pi 3, and the Ajazz keyboard with GMK Key dots.
The hardware for the installation included a projector, full PDA setup with amplifier and loudspeakers, as well as a Yamaha mixer, all directly linked to the cybderdeck like a true synthesizer.
A “screen” was created on the wall for the projection in order to mount the responsive Hue lights for an ambient glow along the wall. The lights were programmed to match the color of the score and background of the HTML page that rendered the score. To secure the connection, a router with a local connection was set up for the lights.
The rest of the installation was furnished with audiophile staples, such as the acoustic oriental rug and acrylic seat. A fog machine with dry ice was used to help diffuse the light and add an effect to the installation itself.
A personal finishing touch on the synthesizer was this custom frosted MAGG logo based on the legendary MOOG design on the back aluminum panel.
