Freq : 2
a Squidsoup project

Part musical instrument, part composition, Freq2 takes the shape of your shadow and turns it into sound. Freq2 can be played like an instrument, creating dramatic and complex land- and sound-scapes derived directly from one's own physical movement in space.

The Freq project uses your whole body to control the precise nature of a sound – a form of musical instrument. The mechanism used is to trace the outline of a person's shadow, using a webcam, and transform this line into an audible sound. Any sound can be described as a waveform – essentially a line – and so these lines can be derived from one’s shadow. What you see is literally what you hear, as the drawn wave is immediately audible as a realtime dynamic drone.

Freq2 adds a temporal component to the mix; a sonic composition in which to frame the instrument. The visuals, an abstract 3-dimensional landscape, extrudes in real-time into the distance, leaving a trail of the interactions that have occurred. This ‘memory’ of what has gone before is reflected in the sounds, with long loops echoing passed interactions. The sounds, all generated in real-time from the live waveform, are played at a range of predefined pitches and times creating a rich evolving soundscape.

Freq was originally commissioned for Cybersonica06, and has since been exhibited at numerous venues including Late at Tate Britain.

:: More details about this project, and others, can be found on our blog, here.

squidsoup page

Squidsoup is a digital arts group specialising in immersive interactive installations within physical 3D space. Their work combines sound, light, physical space and virtual worlds to produce immersive and emotive headspaces. They explore the modes and effects of interactivity, looking to make digital experiences where meaningful and creative interaction can occur.

Contributors: Anthony Rowe and Gareth Bushell.