recent/upcoming performances

So it’s been a while since I’ve posted any info here. Since a recent re-wire of the sensorBib to switch all solid-core wiring with stranded(a mistake I will not make again), I’ve been working on putting music together to perform on my new sensor-augmented upright bass. My premier performance in Columbia University’s Dodge Hall was a smashing success. I was also able to do an in-class demonstration for George Lewis’s course “Jazz in the Global Imagination” that included a short group improvisation alongside George, with Mario Diaz de Leon and Steve Lehman. A video of the event will be posted soon to Columbia’s new jazz website, Jazz Studies Online.

On Thursday March 27th I’ll be performing alongside New York jazz drumming psychopath Kevin Shea, with a possible third member as yet undetermined. We’ll be performing as part of the Columbia Computer Music Center’s “CMC Fün Nite,” a monthly concert series to perform new electronic music. If you’re in New York City you should come on up to Prentis Hall at 632 W. 125th St.

it is finished(sort of)

I finished the hardware portion of my sensor array right before I left for a tour and recording session with Capillary Action, but didn’t get a chance to post pictures, so here they are, only a month late. In the coming weeks I’ll be working on refining the PD patches that do the actual audio processing, as well as doing some composition. Keep an eye out for new videos and mp3s.

paper pattern

I successfully printed out my pattern onto a bunch of 8.5×11 sheets of paper, taped them together and cut them out. I taped the patterns onto my bass to make sure that it all fits the way my model said it should, and so far so good. This also let me figure out exactly where I wanted to put the electrodes, MouseTrap boxes, and the Arduino on the bass itself, in places where the copper would be easily accessible, but the sensor boxes wouldn’t be in my way. I also tried to keep the boxes on the sides of the bass, to minimize their effect on the bass’s resonance. Now it’s off to a fabric store and then to track down a sewing machine.

bib design

I’ve been playing around in Blender and QCad to figure out how I want to mount the sensors onto my bass, and I’ve come up with a design for a cloth covering that will house the sensors in pockets on the bass. Much thanks to Chromo for reminding me of those bass bibs that some players use. This will allow me to remove the sensor apparatus if I want to play acoustically, and also to non-permanently mount the sensors onto a different bass if I’m traveling. I put together a sewing pattern, so as soon as I get to a fabric store and select a cloth, I should be able to sew this up without too much trouble.