Thunderclap For Six Kinetic Light Drums

Jenn Figg, Matthew McCormack, and Paul Cox

Music Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression

• Year: 2012
• Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan, U.S.A.

Abstract:

Program notes: This work merges sound and light to illuminate complex rhythmic motives, polyrhythms and metrical patterns in a visual display generated by three drummers playing six ``light'' drums. These new instruments bring to life the dreams of 20th century synesthetes, such as Wassily Kandinsky and Alexander Scriabin and others who sought to create an imagined ``visual music,'' an ideal synthesis of music and visual art. Community Light Beacons are percussion instruments that leverage the potentials of music, analog technology, and human-generated power to visualize sound. These instruments add the dimension of light to the ancient tradition of drumming. The drums are user-powered, and when they are played---banged, hit and tapped---the vibrations from the drumhead are converted to electricity by the internal speaker transducer. The generated energy powers ultra bright LEDs, which light up with every hit and beam out from the Fresnel lens. Composer(s) Credits: Jenn Figg, Matthew McCormack, Paul Cox Instrumentalist(s) Credits: Ryan Hilty, Samuel Haese, Eric Young (Kinetic Light Drums) Artist(s) Biography: Jenn Figg is an artist investigating the connections between industry, science and art through the transformation of energy, performative objects and constructed ecosystems. She graduated with a BFA in Textiles from the Rhode Island School of Design and an MFA from the University of California at Santa Barbara. She is pursuing her Ph.D. in Media, Art, and Text at Virginia Commonwealth University. She lives in Baltimore and is an Assistant Professor of Art at Towson University in Maryland. Exhibitions include The Print Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, The Art House at the Jones Center in Austin, Texas, Virginia MOCA in Virginia Beach, Virginia, the Columbus Center of Science and Industry in Columbus, Ohio, the Ingenuity Festival in Cleveland, Ohio. Other awards and residencies include the MacDowell Colony, the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council Residency, the Great Lakes College Association New Directions Initiative, and the University of California Interdisciplinary Humanities Center, Visual, Performing & Media Arts Award. Matthew McCormack explores energy transformation and expression through technology, kinetic sculpture and blown glass. He graduated with a BFA in Glass from The Ohio State University and is now living in Baltimore, Maryland. He is pursuing an Interdisciplinary MFA at Towson University. His research interests include modifying a speaker transducer for optimum energy generation and developing a series of rapid prototyped Fresnel lens stamps for quartz crystal light instruments. His work has been featured at the Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art in Virginia Beach, Virginia, the Columbus Center of Science and Industry in Columbus, Ohio, the Toledo Museum of Art in Toledo, Ohio, the Rankin Art Gallery at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Michigan, the National Museum of Glass in Eskisehir, Turkey, the Franklin Park Conservatory in Columbus, Ohio, the Ingenuity Festival in Cleveland, Ohio, and as part of the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council's Governors Island Residency in New York City. Paul Cox is a scholar, composer and percussionist in Cleveland, Ohio. He currently teaches music history and percussion at Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) and the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where he is a Visiting Assistant Professor. He earned a PhD in musicology from CWRU in 2011 after the completion of his dissertation, Collaged Codes: John Cage's Credo in Us, a study of Cage and Merce Cunningham's first dance collaboration in 1942. Current projects include composing Just.Are.Same for string quartet, oboe and tape, which weaves together an electronic soundscape of spoken words drawn from victims of genocide with acoustic and electronic sounds; composing an evening-length work for the ensemble NO EXIT, in collaboration with famed world percussionist Jamie Haddad and guitarist Bobby Ferrazza; curating a Cage ``Musicircus'' for the opening of the new Museum of Contemporary Art in Cleveland, and artistically advising the Sitka Fest in Alaska, a three-month-long festival of arts and culture. Ryan Hilty is a percussionist earning a degree in Music Education from the Case Western Reserve University School of Music in Cleveland, Ohio. He is currently in his second undergraduate year, studying percussion with Matthew Larson. He has performed as a percussionist in numerous ensembles, including the Crestwood Wind Ensemble, Jazz Band, and the Cleveland Youth Wind Symphony. He is the recipient of the 2010 John Phillip Sousa Award. After earning his degree in music education, Ryan aspires to become a high school band director. Samuel Haese is a student of music and physics at Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) in Cleveland, OH. He has studied concert percussion with Matthew Bassett, Feza Zweifel, and Matthew Larson, and currently collaborates with Paul Cox in exploring and performing modern percussion music. In the meantime, Sam is receiving a BA in Music for studying piano with Gerardo Teissonniere through the Cleveland Institute of Music. Sam intends to also receive a degree in Engineering Physics from CWRU which he hopes will allow him to explore and understand music technologies. Originally from Berkeley, California, his current plans include moving to a sunnier place than Cleveland after graduation within the next two years. Eric Young is a student at Case Western Reserve University majoring in Computer Science and Audio Engineering. He grew up in Kansas City, Missouri. He plans on incorporating his interests into a career developing digital audio software. Eric has been studying general percussion performance since 2003 and specializes in jazz drums. Concert Venue and Time: Necto, Tuesday May 22, 9:00pm

Citation:

BibTeX Entry:

  @incollection{nime2012-music-FiggMcCormackCox2012,
 abstract = {Program notes:

This work merges sound and light to illuminate complex rhythmic motives, polyrhythms and metrical patterns in a visual display generated by three drummers playing six ``light'' drums. These new instruments bring to life the dreams of 20th century synesthetes, such as Wassily Kandinsky and Alexander Scriabin and others who sought to create an imagined ``visual music,'' an ideal synthesis of music and visual art.

Community Light Beacons are percussion instruments that leverage the potentials of music, analog technology, and human-generated power to visualize sound. These instruments add the dimension of light to the ancient tradition of drumming. The drums are user-powered, and when they are played---banged, hit and tapped---the vibrations from the drumhead are converted to electricity by the internal speaker transducer. The generated energy powers ultra bright LEDs, which light up with every hit and beam out from the Fresnel lens.

Composer(s) Credits:

Jenn Figg, Matthew McCormack, Paul Cox

Instrumentalist(s) Credits:

Ryan Hilty, Samuel Haese, Eric Young (Kinetic Light Drums)

Artist(s) Biography:

Jenn Figg is an artist investigating the connections between industry, science and art through the transformation of energy, performative objects and constructed ecosystems. She graduated with a BFA in Textiles from the Rhode Island School of Design and an MFA from the University of California at Santa Barbara. She is pursuing her Ph.D. in Media, Art, and Text at Virginia Commonwealth University. She lives in Baltimore and is an Assistant Professor of Art at Towson University in Maryland. Exhibitions include The Print Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, The Art House at the Jones Center in Austin, Texas, Virginia MOCA in Virginia Beach, Virginia, the Columbus Center of Science and Industry in Columbus, Ohio, the Ingenuity Festival in Cleveland, Ohio. Other awards and residencies include the MacDowell Colony, the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council Residency, the Great Lakes College Association New Directions Initiative, and the University of California Interdisciplinary Humanities Center, Visual, Performing \& Media Arts Award.

Matthew McCormack explores energy transformation and expression through technology, kinetic sculpture and blown glass. He graduated with a BFA in Glass from The Ohio State University and is now living in Baltimore, Maryland. He is pursuing an Interdisciplinary MFA at Towson University. His research interests include modifying a speaker transducer for optimum energy generation and developing a series of rapid prototyped Fresnel lens stamps for quartz crystal light instruments. His work has been featured at the Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art in Virginia Beach, Virginia, the Columbus Center of Science and Industry in Columbus, Ohio, the Toledo Museum of Art in Toledo, Ohio, the Rankin Art Gallery at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Michigan, the National Museum of Glass in Eskisehir, Turkey, the Franklin Park Conservatory in Columbus, Ohio, the Ingenuity Festival in Cleveland, Ohio, and as part of the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council's Governors Island Residency in New York City.

Paul Cox is a scholar, composer and percussionist in Cleveland, Ohio. He currently teaches music history and percussion at Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) and the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where he is a Visiting Assistant Professor. He earned a PhD in musicology from CWRU in 2011 after the completion of his dissertation, \emph{Collaged Codes: John Cage's Credo in Us, a study of Cage and Merce Cunningham's first dance collaboration in 1942}. Current projects include composing \emph{Just.Are.Same} for string quartet, oboe and tape, which weaves together an electronic soundscape of spoken words drawn from victims of genocide with acoustic and electronic sounds; composing an evening-length work for the ensemble NO EXIT, in collaboration with famed world percussionist Jamie Haddad and guitarist Bobby Ferrazza; curating a Cage ``Musicircus'' for the opening of the new Museum of Contemporary Art in Cleveland, and artistically advising the Sitka Fest in Alaska, a three-month-long festival of arts and culture.

Ryan Hilty is a percussionist earning a degree in Music Education from the Case Western Reserve University School of Music in Cleveland, Ohio. He is currently in his second undergraduate year, studying percussion with Matthew Larson. He has performed as a percussionist in numerous ensembles, including the Crestwood Wind Ensemble, Jazz Band, and the Cleveland Youth Wind Symphony. He is the recipient of the 2010 John Phillip Sousa Award. After earning his degree in music education, Ryan aspires to become a high school band director.

Samuel Haese is a student of music and physics at Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) in Cleveland, OH.  He has studied concert percussion with Matthew Bassett, Feza Zweifel, and Matthew Larson, and currently collaborates with Paul Cox in exploring and performing modern percussion music. In the meantime, Sam is receiving a BA in Music for studying piano with Gerardo Teissonniere through the Cleveland Institute of Music. Sam intends to also receive a degree in Engineering Physics from CWRU which he hopes will allow him to explore and understand music technologies.  Originally from Berkeley, California, his current plans include moving to a sunnier place than Cleveland after graduation within the next two years.

Eric Young is a student at Case Western Reserve University majoring in Computer Science and Audio Engineering. He grew up in Kansas City, Missouri. He plans on incorporating his interests into a career developing digital audio software. Eric has been studying general percussion performance since 2003 and specializes in jazz drums.

Concert Venue and Time: Necto, Tuesday May 22, 9:00pm},
 address = {Ann Arbor, Michigan, U.S.A.},
 author = {Jenn Figg and Matthew McCormack and Paul Cox},
 booktitle = {Music Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression},
 day = {21-23},
 editor = {Georg Essl and Brent Gillespie and Michael Gurevich and Sile O'Modhrain},
 month = {May},
 publisher = {Electrical Engineering \& Computer Science and Performing Arts Technology, University of Michigan},
 title = {Thunderclap For Six Kinetic Light Drums},
 year = {2012}
}