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In den Wald is an immersive, interactive sound installation that blends technology with nature, inviting visitors to engage in a dynamic, evolving forest environment. Created for the Nature Unlimited exhibition at lange Nacht der Museen in the ArtPlus Museum in Donaueschingen, the installation uses a custom-built light barrier system to detect the number of people in the museum, generating a constantly shifting sonic landscape based on this data.
The work explores the relationship between humans and nature, positioning visitors not just as observers but as active participants whose movements and presence influence the soundscape in real time.
The sound design of In den Wald is built around two layers: an atmospheric background and an interactive foreground. The background features forest-like sounds, rustling leaves, wind, and wood-like textures to create a tranquil, immersive environment in line with the exhibition's theme, "Nature Unlimited." The foreground evolves from percussive sounds to bird calls, which add a lively, organic element to the experience. The piece integrates four main sound groups: bird calls and synthesisers interacting with visitors, field recordings of forest sounds, and variable wind sounds that increase as more people enter the space.
At the heart of the installation is the custom-built light barrier system, which uses lasers and brightness sensors to track visitors’ movements. This system translates the data into MIDI messages, which are processed to drive generative sound elements. As people enter or exit the space, the system recalculates the sonic landscape, ensuring no two experiences are the same.
In den Wald offers a unique exploration of how technology can enhance the perception of natural environments, creating a living, breathing sound ecosystem where the boundary between human presence and nature blurs. The installation invites visitors to participate in the unfolding experience, fostering an evolving interaction between technology, sound, and nature.
The work is scored for self playing piano and spatial audio system, both orchestrated via two computers that combine notational logic, real-time audio synthesis, and algorithmic behaviours in a wireless environment. Sonically, the piece draws on a wide palette: glitched-out piano fragments, recursive Shepard-tone illusions, unstable loops, and recontextualized audience interactions. These elements blend into a hybrid between composed material and performative instability, where no two performances are alike.
Originally commissioned for the NextGenerationX Festival at ZKM, Mild Inconveniences was developed with an openness to emergent failure. Each of its performances take on a radically different shape, not by design, but through a willingness to integrate real-time complications, including technical malfunctions and spontaneous audience participation.
Rather than resist these interruptions, the piece treats them as collaborators.
Conceptually, the work engages with the growing complexity and interdependence of technology in performance. In an era where music and performance are increasingly intertwined with sophisticated infrastructures of software, automation, and interfaces, the line between artistic intention and technical disruption becomes an intriguing space for exploration.
Functioning somewhere between experimental composition, performance art, and systems design, the piece interrogates what it means to "control" a musical system and whether control is even desirable. It is not merely about mishaps; it is about systems failing gracefully, about listening through disorder, and about building aesthetic value from the uncomfortable, and the imperfect.
Eine kleine Studie der Polyphonie is an exploration of polyphony within the context of electroacoustic spatial sound, blending experimental synthesis with a unique approach to sound placement. The piece is driven by a philosophy that reconsiders space itself as part of the instrument. In traditional spatial sound compositions, a finished piece is rendered into a fixed spatial setup. However, in Eine kleine Studie der Polyphonie, real-time automation, combined with live instruments, transforms the sound into a dynamic interaction between the composition and the space it occupies.
Reflecting on the philosophical implications of polyphony, the piece pushes beyond traditional polyphonic instruments. While traditional instruments, like the piano, cannot truly create discrete polyphony due to their shared resonance, Eine kleine Studie der Polyphonie uses the array of 31 speakers to break this limitation. Each speaker functions like a distinct instrument, capable of independent tonal shaping, creating a truly polyphonic experience reminiscent of a choir of 31 singing speakers, each playing a strict electronic score. This approach aligns with a broader exploration of electroacoustic composition, where the synthesis of sound, its spatialization, and the live manipulation of these elements creates new forms of musical expression.
At its core, the piece serves as a "proof of concept," illustrating the potential of combining modern synthesis, experimental spatial sound techniques, and live performance. The integration of philosophy, technology, and creative experimentation demonstrates the future possibilities of electroacoustic music, where the boundaries of both sound and space are fluid and open to reinterpretation. The work continues to evolve, with future revisions planned to refine its structural and sonic elements further, ensuring that it reaches its fullest potential as an innovative and engaging piece for both performers and listeners alike.