Hostname: page-component-7c8c6479df-5xszh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-03-28T18:16:57.346Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Auracle: a voice-controlled, networked sound instrument

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 November 2005

JASON FREEMAN
Affiliation:
College of Architecture, Music Department, Georgia Institute of Technology, 840 McMillan Street, Atlanta, GA 30332-0456, USA E-mail: jason@jasonfreeman.net
KRISTJAN VARNIK
Affiliation:
Akademie Schloss Solitude, Solitude 3, D-70197 Stuttgart, Germany E-mail: kristjan.varnik@akademie-solitude.de
C. RAMAKRISHNAN
Affiliation:
Institut fuer Musik und Akustik, ZKM, Lorenzstraße 19, D-76135 Karlsruhe, Germany E-mail: cramakrishnan@acm.org
MAX NEUHAUS
Affiliation:
350 Fifth Avenue, Suite 3304, New York, NY 10118, USA E-mail: neuhaus@max-neuhaus.info
PHIL BURK
Affiliation:
Softsynth, 75 Pleasant Lane, San Rafael, CA 94901, USA URL: http://www.softsynth.com/contacts.html
DAVID BIRCHFIELD
Affiliation:
Arts, Media, and Engineering, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA E-mail: dbirchfield@asu.edu

Abstract

Auracle is a voice-controlled, networked sound instrument that enables users to control a software synthesizer with their voice and to interact with each other in real time over the Internet. This paper discusses the historical background of the project, beginning with Neuhaus' ‘virtual aural spaces’ in the 1960s and relating them to Barbosa's conception of ‘shared sonic environments’. The architecture of the system is described in detail, including the multi-level analysis of vocal input, the communication of that analysis data across the network, and the mapping of that data onto a software synthesizer.

Not only is Auracle itself a collaborative, networked instrument, but it was developed through a collaborative, networked process. The project's development mechanisms are examined, including the use of existing tools for distributed development, the creation of custom development applications, the adoption of extreme programming practices, and the use of Auracle itself as a means for communication and collaboration among developers.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© Cambridge University Press 2005

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Footnotes

The Auracle project is a production of Max Neuhaus and Akademie Schloss Solitude (art, science and business program) with the financial support from the Landesstiftung Baden-Würtemburg. We express our gratitude for their generous support. Auracle is available at http://auracle.org

Freeman et al. supplementary material

Freeman et al. supplementary material

Download Freeman et al. supplementary material(Audio)
Audio 5.4 MB