Interactive Musical Furniture

"Musical Chairs" is the development project explored in my dissertation research. The project stems from my previous work in embedded acoustic instruments and evolves the concept to explore embedded furniture, turning the home into a customizable performance space for interactive art. A kind of technological update to the old Romantic Salons. These instruments are designed as practical living room furniture, but are fabricated with sensors, processors, and audio drivers embedded within - making these fully functional, interactive musical instruments. 

This project was most recently featured in the 20th anniversary festival for the New West Electro-Acoustic Music Organization (NWEAMO) in San Diego, California. It was involved in a large, audience participation meta-composition by Marcus Anomalous of Tulane University alongside multiple other interactive musical installations. Please visit https://soundcloud.com/xenonsound-misc/nweamo-metacomposition-2018 to listen to a binaural excerpt of this performance, recorded by David Pearl. To find out more about NWEAMO, visit nweamo.org

Coffee Table

The Coffee Table is inspired by the first embedded instrument designed by the maker. The Textural CrossFader is a two-keyboard instrument performed by selecting from a variety of sounds with one keyboard, determining the timbral quality of the sound, and pitch shift those sounds with the other keyboard, creating chords and melodies with the selected sonic texture. 

In the same way, this table is performed by selecting up to five sounds with the further keyboard and pitch shifting those sounds with the nearer keyboard. The table is polyphonic, allowing for up to five pitches to be played simultaneously. 

The table has six speakers spaced around the faces, as well as two subwoofers below; allowing for full-range, spatialized audio. 

• Demo1
• Demo2

Wingback chair

The WingBack's synthesis is inspired by the Aeolian Chimes, one of my previous instruments, an electroacoustic wind chime. The chimes essentially functioned as regular wind chimes, but the clapper and bars were wrapped in copper tape, triggering an electronically synthesized sound when the wind caused them to touch. 

Similarly, when the user taps on the right arm or the left stretcher, an additively synthesized chime is triggered. The cushions in this piece are pressure sensitive and change the quality of the chimes. Leaning left and right changes the fundamental frequency of the sound and rocking forward and back changes the oscillator’s waveform and the partial ratios. 

The chair has speakers in the wings and in the base, allowing for vertical spatialization of the sound. It also uses a subwoofer in the base and bass shakers in the back. This allows for low frequencies to be felt, as well as heard by the user. 

• Concept Demo

End Table

The End Table was the first experiment in this project. It set the design and material guidelines for the rest of the pieces that followed. 

Touching the screen triggers the table’s synthesis. The XY coordinates of the touch points control the frequency and quality of the sound, with left/right controlling the frequency of the oscillator and forward/back controlling the oscillator’s waveform. The table is polyphonic and can detect up to 10 touch points. 

There are also two photo-resistors embedded in the top. Blocking light from the left resistor adds distortion to the sound and blocking the right resistor increases a chorusing delay effect.  

The table is a tenor/alto-range instrument and uses four speakers, one in each face allowing for full 360° spatialized audio. 

• Concept Demo

Ottoman

The Ottoman's synthesis is based on a previous instrument designed by the maker. The JoyStyx is a small, cubic instrument with speakers spaced around its faces. It is performed by moving five video game joysticks, each controlling an independent granular synthesizer. The movements of the joysticks adjust the parameters of the synthesis, as well as spatialize the sound around the body of the instrument. 

This ottoman is designed as a single joystick. The cushion is pressure sensitive and can measure how the user is sitting on it. Leaning forward to back and side to side allows you to use your full body as a joystick.

The ottoman is a tenor-range instrument and uses four speakers, one in each face. Moving around the cushion causes the sound to move around the ottoman. 

• Concept Demo