CURRENT PROJECTS

The Pipe Machine

(News:The pipe machine will be shown at Night Time #2, on May 27th 2007, at the Performance space, Sydney.)

‘The Pipe Machine’ is a new musical instrument and interactive sound installation made of several long flexible PVC pipes each containing a microphone and one speaker. The instrument works by inputting other sounds into the pipes. Echoes and reverberation are then produced by the pipes due to the feedback loops formed between the microphones and speakers and the propagation delay of sound in the pipes.

The total length of the pipe is 150m, the type is 50mm diametre electrical corrugated conduit.

Each pipe is acoustically linked to all the other pipes via a custom-made electronic mixer, which is used to set the amount of sound passed from one pipe to the others. Changing these amounts has a dramatic effect on the sound produced by the instrument since it changes echo patterns, reverberation and the overall sound level.

‘The Pipe Machine’ thus creates a complex network of electro-acoustical phenomena, producing peculiar and interesting sound effects.

The inner workings of ‘The Pipe Machine’ are inspired from 70’s echo chamber devices (e.g. the ‘Space echo’ from Roland). The difference is that with these devices, delay is achieved via a magnetic tape loop (instead of sound propagating in a pipe) and write and read heads are used instead of microphones and speakers. Also, these devices have only one tape whereas ‘the pipe machine’ uses several delay lines which, moreover, interact with each other in complex ways.

The pipes can be placed in any configuration (running along a room or building or be arranged in a pile or coil).

As an extension of the ‘The Pipe Machine’ it is also planned to connect the installation to the Internet via a web server, allowing remote visitors to also communicate with physical visitors and other Internet visitors. Via a flash-based web page, Internet visitors, like physical visitors, will be able to send their voice into the pipes and hear their echoed and transformed voice back.

Speakers connecting to the pipes.

(More pictures / videos / sounds soon)