1. Networked Sound Ecologies

brief

Students explore strategies for creating a networked sound ecology, or a rich environment that evokes a (potentially otherworldly) location, by way of leveraging embedded technologies (Raspberry Pi 3), network communication strategies (OpenSoundControl), and basic sound synthesis techniques (SuperCollider3).

Each student will create 2 sounds: a background sound and a foreground sound. The background sound should productively contribute to an overall jungle or rainforest atmosphere. The foreground sound should mimic an animal or other being that is heard above or in addition to the jungle/rainforest atmosphere. Students are challenged to create a unique background sound that blends well with the group sound as well as a foreground sound that exhibits some distinct personality (for example: a scared pig, a sleepy bird). Students are further challenged to design a structure for rate of message sending that promotes the desired environment (i.e. does not result in pure chaos).

Students will deploy their foreground and background sounds to Raspberry Pi 3 and control them via a Graphical User Interface (GUI) from their laptops over the network (using Open Sound Control). We will demo, or perform, the environment in the gallery as part of our final critique.

requirements

• A background sound: textural, sustaining envelope (written in SC3)
• A foreground sound: evoking a creature or being with a distinct personality, deterministic envelope (SC3)
• Deployed to Raspberry Pi 3 (launches automatically)
• Controlled from a Laptop via GUI (SC3)
• Message sending protocol reinforces environment (taking pins & splits as an example)