Muscle-powered sound synthesis (Workshop)

In this workshop, we convert hand-crank flashlights to off-grid sound machines.

Electric energy served via the power grid is almost exclusively generated through large rotating magnets for immediate consumption. The seclusion of those colossal generators from us, their energy consumers, creates a deceptive gap in our perception. Their absence in the lived-in world counteracts an intuitive understanding of the scale of physical work needed to power a city. A felt awareness of what is necessary to heat an oven compared to energizing a lamp or powering a sound system is lost to the perceived infinite supply of energy through the fantastic power socket.

We can regain a felt awareness of the scales of electric power systems through the physical experience of rotating a generator using our musculature pushing trillions of electrons. The beads of sweat on our foreheads dancing to the generated sounds will reflect the results of our endeavor with immediacy.

Using second-hand electric torches and scrapped electronics we will build a hurdy-gurdy synthesizer. Unlike with most electronic devices, the electric energy consumed by our synthesizer will be handmade. The movement of our body directly translates to the voltage the synthesizer receives, enabling the musician to explore soundscapes at the fringe of a working circuit. The built objects will be sonic memorials to the infrastructures of electric power.

Open for any level of experience in soldering, electronics, and synthesizers.

Partcipants are invited to take part to the collaborative performance during the
AMRO Nightly Builds in Raumschiff.

Material cost: 10€

Register here: https://radical-openness.org/en/programm/2022/muscle-powered-sound-synthesis