Read more about STiMULiNE

THE AUDIO-TACTILE : AN OTHER WAY OF HEARING

The audio-tactile is based on wearable multi-channel systems wich creates the circulation of tactile and sound stimulations on the surface of the body possible. The skin perceives the frequency modulations in the form of differentiated tactile feelings. These localised vibrations feel quiet different from those perceived more homogenously all over the body in usual amplified music concerts.

Here, the vibration is perceptible locally on the skin where the speaker is placed, even with very low volume.

Concerning our sense of hearing in the audio-tactile « the less we hear, the more we will hear ». To activate the bone conduction perception of sound we have to pertubate the organ by wearing earplugs. By reducing the natural acoustic perception of the surrounding space they increase our attention to our one body space. These sounds have no localization in space and are perceived like coming from inside the body. The body becomes a resonance box with a spatialized diffusion.

The tactile synthesia in the audio-tactile systems makes it possible to transmit a pallet of rough, smooth or rythmical singular sensations to the skin. The synesthaesia of listening and feeling presents unusual possibilities to connect body and spaces through sonic material.

- osseous conduction drawing -------

The STiMULiNE project is a prolongation of the previous audio-tactile installations started in 2003 by Lynn Pook and Julien Clauss. This projects grows from a sculptural practice exploring the proxemic relationship between audience and object. It reduces at maximum the distance between object and audience and acts directly on and in the body space. Creating first installations for a reduced amount of people, Stimuline follows the scenographic research on the position of the listener, the relationship between the audience members and confronts the perception of real space with that of virtual spaces perceived through the interface. It opens a fictional space built on the tactile dimension of the sound which binds architecture to the perception of the body in our contemporary political environment. This polysensorial concert changes the usual codes of a concert. The audience becomes part of the scenography and is immersed in the noisy and minimal sound played on his skin.

---------

HARDWARE

The overall suit
draw overall suit by Lynn Pook

The overall suits created in collaboration with the designer Sarah Veillon are the heart of the performance. We developped interfaces in size S/M/L, made up out of a network of straps, cables, hook-and-loop tape, textile and rubber bands. They allow a quick and precise positioning of the 15 transducers on any kind of morphologie.

The multi channel system

A matrix box routes the 15 channels signal into 30 cables which are connected to the interfaces. The real time played and spazialised sounds travel on 20 channels : the 15 channels wearable sound sytem on the body and the in ten space located external 4.1 channels sound system. The 4.1 system placed into the space plays the distant sounds used sometimes as complement of the narrow played sounds on the body.

SOFTWARE

The realtime 20 channel spacialisation tools

The spacialisation of the sounds on this 20 channel multiphonic system permit to precisely define the circulation and the balance of the sounds on body and environment.

The spacialisation is done in realtime with specialy developped interfaces and software : joystick, puppet with sensors, spatialisation tools and realtime sound design tools.

[stimuline]
[see more...]