Pre-empting Descent
Developed in 2009 by Niall Quinn
Pre-empting Descent is a generative Audio Visual Installation by Niall Quinn. The piece is dictated by automateddrops of liquid, which run as a central theme throughout the piece bothsonically and visually.
This work was a result of my research into interactive and generative systems. As the paint descends down the canvas over a period ofseveral hours, so too does the sequence of electronic noises that decrease inpitch. The shape of the resultant sound is controlled by the colour of thepaint and the rate of progression it drips down the canvas.
As the drops descend to their inevitable destination, the sound of a voice canbe heard decreasing in pitch. The drop refers to itself and the sound it willmake upon its impact with the bucket, suggesting that the fluid contained thespeech itself.
Multiple elements and factors areintroduced as an attempt to control the behaviour of the fluid, yet theunpredictable nature of the drop soon relinquishes any notion of control as thechaotic properties of fluid mechanics are demonstrated first hand, resulting ina durational performance by the drops themselves.
As the drops descend at different intervals, chance dialogues of abstract soundare created, whereby manipulated sentences are made audible, leaving a visualtrace of sonic residue.
To achieve this, I used camera trackingin Jitter. This datawas then sent to an algorithm of descending pre-recorded samples in Max MSP.
Developed in 2009 by Niall Quinn
Pre-empting Descent is a generative Audio Visual Installation by Niall Quinn. The piece is dictated by automateddrops of liquid, which run as a central theme throughout the piece bothsonically and visually.
This work was a result of my research into interactive and generative systems. As the paint descends down the canvas over a period ofseveral hours, so too does the sequence of electronic noises that decrease inpitch. The shape of the resultant sound is controlled by the colour of thepaint and the rate of progression it drips down the canvas.
As the drops descend to their inevitable destination, the sound of a voice canbe heard decreasing in pitch. The drop refers to itself and the sound it willmake upon its impact with the bucket, suggesting that the fluid contained thespeech itself.
Multiple elements and factors areintroduced as an attempt to control the behaviour of the fluid, yet theunpredictable nature of the drop soon relinquishes any notion of control as thechaotic properties of fluid mechanics are demonstrated first hand, resulting ina durational performance by the drops themselves.
As the drops descend at different intervals, chance dialogues of abstract soundare created, whereby manipulated sentences are made audible, leaving a visualtrace of sonic residue.
To achieve this, I used camera trackingin Jitter. This datawas then sent to an algorithm of descending pre-recorded samples in Max MSP.
