SPASM
Music-making agents fly around the screen according to their own rules. We can see them—they look like pictures—and we can control a pointer which listens to them. If the listener is near a group of agents, we hear a mix of their musics. Some of the agents respond to the listener's touch by playing more sounds, and the agents also modulate the tempo of their music to better match the speed of the pointer. We can make the listener follow the agents whose music we like, or we can move the listener in other ways for better control or to hear an ever-shifting mix of sounds. The result is a sort of simple DJ system where the mix is not controlled so much by the user, as it is controlled by the seemingly chaotic movement patterns of the agents. In SPASM, the music has its own motives, and all we can do is listen to it in our own way.
Artist Bio
Isaac Wallis is a musician/programmer from Wyoming. After a stint in the Marines, he studied at Berklee College of Music and Arizona State University, where he is currently finishing a PhD in Media Arts and Sciences. He plays blues harmonica, builds didgeridoos (not good ones), and in general tries to lead a pretty relaxed life. He also still opens the door for people like they did in the old days, which can be confusing for them if they are way over on the other side of the parking lot.