2010-03-10T18:15:02Z John Jacobs Copyright 2010, John Jacobs SPHPBLOG patchwrangler.net]]> http://www.jj.chaos.org.au/index.php?entry=entry080818-220152 2008-08-19T00:00:00Z 2008-08-19T00:00:00Z
Inventor/Musician Bart Hopkin published the wonderfully inspiring journal, Experimental Musical Instruments.
His website www.windworld.com, is a treasure-trove of ideas and examples of applied sonic imaginings and I highly recommend it to all of you with an "a-normal" musical bent. He has produced CDs of beautiful other worldy music with his inventions, and his book "Musical Instrument Design" http://windworld.com/products/mid.html is a DIY classic. I am currently building a Baloonaphone based on his designs.]]> http://www.jj.chaos.org.au/index.php?entry=entry070318-050411 2007-03-18T00:00:00Z 2007-03-18T00:00:00Z
Peter Blasser’s highly unique paper circuits fascinate me for three reasons.
The voice architecture is based on a ring of self modulating oscillators, they are living sound beings. They can be “played” by touching the wires of the circuit it self, the musician becomes part of the circuit. And most importantly they are easy to make thanks to Peter’s use of paper circuit boards, a technique perhaps borrowed from the old time feminine art of needlepoint.
My main break-through with the Magic Organ build was to use one of my much treasured but previously useless cardboard LP covers as the front panel/paper circuit structure. The photo shows a two channel version of Peter’s “Old Mr Grassi” synth that I am currently building. I have downloaded the layout from his site http://www.ciat-lonbarde.net/paper/index.html, photocopied it, sticky-taped it to a chosen LP cover. Punched holes with an awl and am using tinned copper wire to connect the components underneath. When finished, the photocopy will be ripped out to leave the album cover artwork showing thru the playable circuitry. I have strengthened the LP cover with a layer or clear contact sheet. Characteristically Peter has taken this a step further making some versions just with wire and components by ultimately dissolving the paper! (see a pic on the site above)
]]> http://www.jj.chaos.org.au/index.php?entry=entry070213-054241 2007-02-13T00:00:00Z 2007-02-13T00:00:00Z
If you're into abstract visuals, DIY hardware and tech history you gotta love Californian dude Steve Beck. Here's a link to an illustrated talk by him covering his work he calls 40 years in 40 minutes. TV Kaleidoscopes, Tongan valve hacking, Islamic sacred video equations, Hendrix home videos and photon seances...its all here folks! http://www.bampfa.berkeley.edu/conversations/atc/ scroll down the list of artists and find Steve Beck. Stick with the video cos after a while the camera pans to the screen and stays there to show some great visuals from this video synth hardware legend. I love the bit where in the stoner 70's he goes live to air on 50000 watts of ERP with analog video waveforms. If anyone out there can send me a link to his original circuits I'd be most grateful.
I got this link from Jean Poole's great electro art blog Sky Noise at Sky Noise]]> http://www.jj.chaos.org.au/index.php?entry=entry070125-030428 2007-01-25T00:00:00Z 2007-01-25T00:00:00Z