Sound Chamber

dome installation project by Kynan Tan, Yvette Coyne, Malcolm Riddoch and Amanda Morrison.
view the ABC Sound Chamber Website

demonstration video of the inside of the dome visuals (better quality video coming soon!)

demonstration video of the hypnogenia audio engine, converting movement directly into sound and video

// description

This installation is a collaborative work between myself and project manager Yvette Coyne to translate my hypnogenia series into an immersive, contained installation. The main difference being that this time we were trying to build the work into an enclosed, inflatable dome with 360 degree visuals, four channel sound and infra-red camera capabilities. The goal of the work was to allow users to fully engage with the space, be completely disconnected from the outside world and have a very direct relationship between their movements and the environmental events.

(conceptual image of first audio/visual dome environments)

Along the way the work grew and grew, with the help of Dr. Malcolm Riddoch we added a lot of internet interactivity, the mac mini server downloaded user-uploaded sounds from the website as well as sending back videos of people participating in the space. We also developed a downloadable application for users at home to use on mac and PC. Oh, and there was also a short documentary made about it.

screenshot of downloadable application

examples of images generated by the program

The hypnogenia works capture movement using a basic USB camera setup and then analyse this information for movement and shape properties. This information is control the generation of sound from several granular modules. The video that is captured is also processed and mangled, then output back through a projector, in the dome this was reflected by a spherical mirror in order to cover the entire radius of the dome.

The dome has been installed at Scitech, Western Australia and will be making international stops in the coming months. Please contact us if you are interested in more information or booking the dome.

Download: application for Mac or Windows, or from the Sound Chamber Website.
And a more detailed concept and description PDF.

The project was only possible through the generous help of the DCA, Screenwest, FTI and the ABC

Hypnogenia_One from Kynan Tan on Vimeo.

Hypnogenia is a series of works in which a custom built Max/MSP patch converts video information into sound. It does this by converting the colour density, object movement, object size and position on the screen into sound density, transposition, speed and spatialisation.

I will try to post the program soon, it needs to be cleaned up first!

Here are some images from Hypnogenia_one which was a part of my recital program, Threads / Hallucinations and was also featured at Breaking Out: Young Composers Concert as part of the Totally Huge New Music Festival. This program uses sound files as the source of granulation. These sound files include a manipulated cello sample, a drum break and a manipulated glockenspiel sample. Video is generated using Jitter.