The Vector Synthesis workshop investigates the direct relationship between sound+image. It draws inspiration from media archaeology and obsolete technologies such as the Cathode Ray Tube monitor, combined with contemporary laser display techniques. Participants will learn how to draw Lissajous figures, render simple two- and three-dimensional shapes, and process photographs and video into vector artwork which can be displayed on oscilloscopes, Vectrex consoles, and ILDA laser displays using audio signals which can also be heard. These vector shapes can also be further modified in real time using external audio sources such as voice, amplified instruments, or electronic synthesizers provided by the participants.

You can see examples of what you might do here:

https://vimeo.com/macumbista/

The core of the workshop will be examples written in the Pure Data programming language. Detailed instructions on how to install and set up Pure Data, as well as a software oscilloscope emulator so you can see your work without special hardware, will be sent to registered participants.

You can view the Vector Synthesis code here:

https://github.com/macumbista/vectorsynthesis/

The language of this workshop is English. Participants are required to bring their own laptops with software installed according to pre-event instructions sent by email.

DURATION
This is one continuous workshop of three days, 5 hours per day. Participation on individual days is not possible.
—FRI 05 JULY 12-17:00
—SAT 06 JULY 12-17:00
—SUN 07 JULY 12-17:00
—Max participants: 14 (50% will be students from Humboldt University, so 7 tickets are available for outside participants)

LOCATION
Signallabor, Humboldt University of Berlin, Georgenstraße 47, Raum 2.26 (2nd floor), Berlin Germany

With kind thanks to Dr. Stefan Höltgen, the Signallabor, and Humboldt University for their generous sponsorship of the event location.

BOOK TICKETS HERE
https://www.eventbrite.de/e/vector-synthesis-pure-data-workshop-berlin-tickets-62307403120

VECTOR SYNTHESIS WITH DEREK HOLZER

http://spektrumberlin.de/events/detail/vector-synthesis-with-derek-holzer.html

WORKSHOP (7hours/1day)
Level: introductory/beginners
Costs: 70 euro
Max number of participants: 12 people
Min number of participants: 4 people
Contact: macumbista@gmail.com
Sign up through this form:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfo-Wn4JIdidSTJuTWmu6mzMFK34VH1d0qDVwMJ9InObAJcig/viewform

OWN COMPUTER AND HEADPHONES ARE NEEDED

DESCRIPTION

The VECTOR SYNTHESIS project is an audiovisual, computational art project using sound synthesis and vector graphics display techniques to investigate the direct relationship between sound+image. It draws on the historical work of artists such as Mary Ellen Bute, John Whitney, Nam June Paik, Ben Laposky, and Steina & Woody Vasulka among many others, as well as on ideas of media archaeology and the creative re-use of obsolete technologies.

SOFTWARE

During this workshop, you will learn how to use a custom library in the Pure Data programming environment to directly control the vertical and horizontal movements, as well as the brightness, of a beam of light. You will then explore Lissajous figures, waveform representations, and other multiplexed, audio-driven visual shapes and forms which can be displayed and manipulated in real time on an XY oscilloscope, Vectrex game console, ILDA laser display, and other analog vector displays using a DC coupled soundcard.

HARDWARE

We will also discuss hardware essentials such as how to modify a normal CRT monitor for vector inputs, how to hack together a cheap DC coupled soundcard, how to use a microcontroller such as the Teensy, Bela or Axoloti as a base for your vector synthesizer, and how to interface with the International Laser Display Association control protocol.

WHAT TO BRING

Please bring your own laptop. If you have a DC soundcard such as the MOTU Ultralight, please bring that as well. Many cheap USB soundcards can be adapted for DC use as well, you can find them on EBay or I will bring several for sale at the workshop. There will be a limited number of displays, so if you already own an analog XY oscilloscope, Vectrex game console, or other vector monitor, that would be very useful to bring. And finally, please get in touch if you have a CRT monitor you would like to see hacked (no guarantees!) during the hardware phase of the workshop. (Additional materials fee applies, we can discuss this.)

LINKS

http://macumbista.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/VECTOR-SYNTHESIS-PURE-DATA-LIBRARY.pdf

https://www.instagram.com/macumbista/

ABOUT THE WORKSHOP HOLDER

Derek Holzer is an American instrument builder and sound artist whose current interests include DIY analogue electronics, field recording, media archaeology and the meeting points of electroacoustic, noise, improv and extreme music.

ATELIER MACUMBA presents

A NIGHT of PRIMITIVE ELECTRONICS featuring

GROWTH [DE]
RANDOM SONIC ATTACK [PL/GR/DE]
DEREK HOLZER + HÉLÈNE CANUET [USA/FR/DE]
The Students of SONIC COLLEGE HADERSLEV [DK]

plus DISTILLED SPIRITS by SLOWLANDS

17 AUG 2016 20:00 doors, 20:30 sound
55 Herzbergstrasse, Berlin-Lichtenberg

Event is held in the ground floor “cold hall”, next to the former Canteen.

GROWTH is a forest of ambiguities. It is an inward gaze, a state of being, and a largely improvised performance by the hands of Berlin based non-musician Lars Ennsen which may be classified in terms of minimal, ambient, and drone.
https://growthgrowth.bandcamp.com/

RANDOM SONIC ATTACK landed on planet earth approximately half a year ago. A collaboration between Goolyk & Damn Jar. Cassette tape album is in the processing state. In the meantime you can listen to one studio improvisation and one live recording here:
https://soundcloud.com/randomsonicattack

HÉLÈNE CANUET is a polymorphe French photographer, writer and performer. Rare on the art scene over 4 years , her work was only show in few galeries in Berlin. Lyrical, surrealistic or conceptuel her propositions are always very personal, almost intimate on the edge of poesie and social politic. Based on improvisation some of her projects seems done to snaked emotion and fired expectation.
https://soundcloud.com/capitaine3000

For her collaboration with instrument-builder DEREK HOLZER this evening, Hélène will present her spoken-word texts as material for the DELILAH TOO VOICE ENCODING SYSTEM.
http://tinyurl.com/delilah-too-ctm-info

The students of SONIC COLLEGE [Haderslev DK] will present the results of their SOUNDBOXES workshop at 20:30 sharp to a limited audience in a separate, darkened hall. Please be ***pünktlich*** if you plan to experience this!
http://soniccollege.org/

PROJECT SPACE KLEINER SALON, BERLIN DE
2-3 APRIL 2016

Explore DIY electronics and sound art performance with your own SoundBox during this two-day workshop in Berlin-Kreuzberg.

SoundBoxes are small, primitive electro-acoustic instruments built from a wooden box, a speaker, a small audio amplifier and a contact microphone. They can create a variety of drone and reverb-type sounds through feedback between the speaker and microphone, or they can bring out the hidden sounds found within everyday objects. They also have small touchpoints which can be used to produce a variety of “circuit bending” sounds.

During the first day, we will learn about electricity, how it becomes sound and then how to build the SoundBoxes themselves. On the second day, we will explore the possibilities of the SoundBoxes, with the goal of collaboratively creating a score for a sound performance of approximately 10-15 minutes in length.

This workshop does not require any previous knowledge of electronics, only an interest and a curiosity in both sound and instrument-building.

DETAILS/REGISTRATION

http://www.artisticworkshopseries.com/derek-holzer-soundboxes

VIDEOS

nonlinearity I from macumbista on Vimeo.

nonlinearity III from macumbista on Vimeo.

SoundBoxes Workshop + Performance Berlin JUL 2015 from macumbista on Vimeo.

Thank you for your kind attention.
Derek

SPEKTRUM art_technology_community
Bürknerstr 12, 12047 Berlin, Germany
18 December at 20:00

SCOPE presents: Derek Holzer & Marco Donnarumma #85

http://spektrumberlin.de/events/detail/derek-holzer-marco-donnarumma-85.html

https://www.facebook.com/events/1643394129271172/

Doors: 19:30 / Start time: 20:00
Event presented by Scope – curated by AudeRrose

Derek Holzer – MACUMBISTA [Vector Synthesis]

Solo performance for self-made analog synthesizer, analog vector video monitor and room by Derek Holzer. His live performances are largely improvisational journeys through different types of non-linear feedback processes, performed on a selection of self-made analog electronic synthesizers. He uses the unstable and chaotic patterns these machine create to explore the physical affects of volume, frequency and complexity within a given architectural space. During this live performance at SPEKTRUM, he will introduce some of his recent experiments in vector-based audiovisual synthesis. For fans of Maryanne Amacher, Bernard Parmegiani, Eliane Radigue and Slayer.

Marco Donnarumma – Ominous and Music for Flesh

In this performance, Marco plays two pieces with the XTH Sense , a biowearable musical instrument he created 5 years ago. By performing whole-body, physical gestures, his body emits bioacoustic sounds which are amplified using wearable microphone sensors, interactively live sampled and diffused through loudspeakers and subwoofers. In this way, he creates music by literally composing the sounds emitted by the muscle tissue of his body in real time. The natural sound of the flesh and its virtual counterpart blend together into unstable sonic objects. This is what he termed Biophysical Music, music that is a joint result of physiological technology and markedly physical, visceral performance.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Derek Holzer (1972) is an American instrument builder and sound artist based in Berlin DE, whose current interests include DIY analog electronics, the relationship between sound + space, media archaeology and the meeting points of electroacoustic, noise, improv and extreme music. He has performed live, taught workshops and created scores of unique instruments and installations since 2002 across Europe, North and South America, and New Zealand.
http://macumbista.net/

Italian born, living and working in Berlin, Marco Donnarumma is a performance artist, sound artist and writer. His work lies where performance art and sound art converge through technology. He has played interactive sound by amplifying sounds from his body, has induced visitors in altered states of self-perception by feeding sounds from their bodies back to their skulls and bones, has immersed audiences in multichannel sound and video produced by the strain of his muscles while he pulled 50Kg stones, and has physicalised digital viruses in the body. The focus of his practise is on how to configure human bodies and machines through sound. He uses biotechnologies, software algorithms and body sensors to create intensely physical actions, concerts and live installations which are renown for combining rigorous science, technical sophistication and critical thinking.
http://marcodonnarumma.com/

SoundBoxes Workshop + Performance Berlin JUL 2015 from macumbista on Vimeo.

SoundBoxes are small, primitive electro-acoustic instruments built from a wooden box, a speaker, a small audio amplifier and a contact microphone. During the first of two workshop days, participants learned about electricity, how it becomes sound and then how to build their own personalized SoundBoxes.

On the second day, they explored the possibilities of the SoundBoxes through a series of listening and improv exercises, with the goal of collaboratively creating the score for an immersive, surround-sound performance inspired by the works of Alvin Lucier, Pauline Oliveros, John Grzinich, David Tudor, Gordon Monahan and others, performed in a darkened room for an eyes-closed audience.

In the piece, a swarm of individual, simple sound sources such as tones and textures are modulated and moved through the space physically by the performers to create a complex sonic environment. Delicate and intimate sounds pass closely near the bodies and ears of the audience, while stronger, more extreme sounds occur at the edges of the space to give a sense of the architecture of the room and the objects in it.

More info: macumbista.net/?page_id=1897

SOUNDBOX ORCHESTRA PERFORMERS

Mert Aslantürk
Itai Bauman
Nicola Gomiero
Claire Guerin
Bethan Lloyd
Zeno Mainardi
Manami N
Rory O’Brien
Javier Salthú
Max Virnich
Ben White
Chris Zahn
Lea Zamiecka

Video by Montse Torredà Martí

18-19 July 2015, Atelier Macumba Berlin

WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION

Atelier Macumba presents the second public workshop in our Berlin-Lichtenberg studio with London circuit-bending master Tasos Stamou. An introduction to hardware hacking which provides a practical and theoretical background in modifying and alternative electronic instrument design techniques using recycled electronics. It is suitable for beginners, as well as to more experienced hackers and sound explorers who wish to push forward their ideas and projects of innovative sound interfaces.

WHAT YOU WILL DO

– Learn all the necessary techniques to turn ‘hackable’ electronic sound toys into useful sonic devices and experimental electronic music instruments.
– Participants will design an experimental music instrument and take it home!
– Practical, hands-on workshop, including all tips to the most common and effective circuit bending modifications.
– Theoretical introduction to handmade electronic instruments, including historical context and presentation of contemporary artists utilizing DIY electronics.
– Participants are welcome to bring their own electronic toys for hacking, otherwise “hackable” toys will be provided from a large selection. Please contact us with any questions regarding “hackability” of your own devices.
– Workshop participants will have the chance to perform with their own hacked instruments as members of an improvised circuit bending ensemble after the workshop completion.

COST & REGISTRATION

EUR 40 (including one sound machine, all material and components)

Participation in this workshop is by PRE-REGISTRATION ONLY to stamouinstruments@gmail.com.

Location and further details will be provided upon registration.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Tasos Stamou is a sound artist, a dedicated circuit bender and an instrument modifier/designer. He is an active member of music tech communities (Music Hackspace & Hackspace London, Hellenic Electroacoustic Music Composers Association). He has been utilizing his hacked creations into various performances (such as at the BENT Festival, New York) and recordings of obscure electronica ( Absurd, Triple Bathe, Orila, Lal Lal Lal, Kukuru Recordings). He has been leading hardware hacking workshops in festivals (Green Man Festival, SOTU Festival Lithuania, Athens Video Art Festival, NXNW Festival in Cologne, etc.) and music tech labs (Macumbista Studio in Berlin, Cafe Oto, Music Hackspace and Noise=Noise in London, STPLN in Sweden, WORM in Rotterdam, etc.).

MORE INFO

www.tasosstamou.info
stamouinstruments.blogspot.com
www.facebook.com/events/189530831383322/

SoundBoxes Orchestra Performance
19 JUL 2015
Atelier Macumba
HB55 Kunstfabrik, Herzbergstrasse 55 (Eingang B)
Berlin-Lichtenberg
Tram M8, 21: Herzbergstr/Siegfriedstr
18:00 PÜNKTLICH!!!!

The participants in the SoundBoxes Workshop will present an immersive, surround-sound experience inspired by the works of Alvin Lucier, Pauline Oliveros, John Grzinich, David Tudor, Gordon Monahan and others, performed in a darkened room for an eyes-closed audience. In the piece, a swarm of individual, simple sound sources such as tones and textures are modulated and moved through the space physically by the performers to create a complex sonic environment. Delicate and intimate sounds pass closely near the bodies and ears of the audience, while stronger, more extreme sounds occur at the edges of the space to give a sense of the architecture of the room and the objects in it.

PLEASE ARRIVE AT 18:00 SHARP FOR THIS PERFORMANCE!

And then stick around for IPAs and a chance to demo some of the Macumbista sound instruments.

TIMETABLE

18:00: SoundBoxes Orchestra Performance (limited places!)
19:00: Derek Holzer vs Jeroen Vandsande “Duelling Benjolins”
20:00: SoundBoxes Orchestra Performance (limited places!)

SOUNDBOX ORCHESTRA PERFORMERS

Mert Aslantürk
Itai Bauman
Nicola Gomiero
Claire Guerin
Bethan Lloyd
Zeno Mainardi
Montse Torredà Martí
Manami N
Rory O’Brien
Javier Salthú
Max Virnich
Ben White
Chris Zahn
Lea Zamiecka

SOUNDBOXES WORKSHOP

Discover the hidden sonic qualities of objects from our everyday world in this hands-on workshop, combining the arts of electronics, sound and performance.

SoundBoxes are small, primitive electro-acoustic instruments built from a wooden box, a speaker, a small audio amplifier and a contact microphone. They can create a variety of drone and reverb-type sounds through feedback between the speaker and microphone, as seen in this video. Or they can bring out the hidden sounds found within everyday objects as seen in this video. They also have small touchpoints which can be used to produce a variety of “crackle box” and “circuit bending” sounds.

This workshop has two parts. During the first day, we will learn about electricity, how it becomes sound and then how to build the SoundBoxes themselves. On the second day, we will explore the possibilities of the SoundBoxes through a series of listening and improv exercises, with the goal of collaboratively creating a score for a sound performance of approximately 15-20 minutes in length. This piece will be presented at the end of the second day.

This workshop does not require any previous knowledge of electronics, only an interest and a curiosity in both sound and instrument-building.

Further information and images can be found here: http://macumbista.net/?page_id=1897

WHAT TO BRING

* One loudspeaker (new, second-hand or salvaged), or one old electronic device containing a functioning loudspeaker of decent size (approx 90mm or larger) which we can remove. The size of this loudspeaker will determine the tone and loudness of your instrument – bigger is usually better. Look in old radios, electronic clocks, hi-fi systems, boomboxes or car audio systems for your own unique speaker!

* A cigar box or similar wooden box to create the instrument. The box should be big enough to hold your speaker, and the lid must not be thicker than 5mm.

Alternately, I will have cigar boxes and loudspeakers for sale if you cannot locate your own.

Participants may also wish to bring their own found objects and images to create a unique audiovisual cabinet of curiosities. Some guitar effect pedals can also make the box more interesting.

All other materials and tools will be provided.

WORKSHOP COSTS

* Basic SoundBox + two workshop days: EUR 40 You can see examples of this SoundBox here: http://macumbista.net/?p=3457

* FuzzTone SoundBox (with integrated distortion effect, for advanced builders) + two workshop days: EUR 55. There are limited materials for this type of box! You can see examples of this SoundBox here: http://macumbista.net/?p=3988

* Vintage wooden cigar box (if needed): EUR 5

* 92mm loudspeaker (if needed): EUR 3.

BASIC SCHEDULE

SAT 18 JULY 13:00-18:00: introduction and box-building
SUN 19 JULY 14:00-18:00: improvisation, score-creation and rehearsal
SUN 19 JULY 18:00-19:00: performance (invite your friends!)

LOCATION

Atelier Macumba, Herzbergstr 55 (Eingang B), Berlin-Lichtenberg

REGISTRATION

Pre-register for this workshop by sending an email with the subject “BERLIN SOUNDBOX WORKSHOP” to MACUMBISTA at the domain GMAIL dot COM. Please indicate whether you would like to build the Basic SoundBox or the FuzzTone SoundBox.

My vocoder-based sound installation DELILAH TOO will open at the CTM Festival, in the Kunstraum Bethanien on 23 JAN 2015, and run until 22 FEB.

I am looking for a number of volunteers to speak, read or sing texts in any language you choose, as well as attempt to communicate with installation visitors (hopefully in a language they do understand) during the entire month of the festival. In the spirit of Alvin Lucier’s “North American Time Capsule”, you could consider these texts as transmissions to other beings in space about what life on Earth is like for you…

I hope that a number of people can take one or two one-hour long slots, and I will try to make a small gathering with snacks/drinks sometime during the festival for people who help out.

You can find a short overview of the project here: http://tinyurl.com/delilah-too-ctm-info

Please contact me by email at MACUMBISTA at the domain GMAIL dot COM with the subject line “volunteer” and I will send more information and a link to the sign-up sheet.

Many thanks!!!! D.