Generative Music Visualization

February 18, 2010 4:08 PM

Clavilux 2000 - Interactive instrument for generative music visualization. The music visualization consists of a digital piano with 88 keys and midi output, a computer running a vvvv patch and a vertical projection above the keyboard. How it works.

For every note played on the keyboard a new visual element appears in the form of a stripe, which follows in its dimensions, position and color the way the particular key was struck: the length and vertical position show the velocity, the stripe’s width reflects the length of each note. Furthermore the system allows the piano player to switch between the standard 2d view and an additional 3d view of the visualization while playing. — Jonas Friedemann Heuer, the inventor

posted by netbros (19 comments total)

Oooo! I can't click on it yet cuz I'm at work...but the name "Clavilux" has me all excited! Is it a clavinet emulator?
posted by Kirk Grim at 4:12 PM on February 18, 2010

Looks pretty cool. I'm curious, though, what is the generative aspect? In music, this usually means sounds iterating through an algorithm or program, making more sounds. Is there some generational connection between elements of the visualization?
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 4:14 PM on February 18, 2010 [1 favorite]

WANT.

Couldn't they have filmed this with less noise? Ba-dum-tish.
posted by Elmore at 4:34 PM on February 18, 2010 [1 favorite]

Totally fucking radical.
posted by Damn That Television at 4:39 PM on February 18, 2010 [1 favorite]

WANT MORE.
posted by i_cola at 4:45 PM on February 18, 2010 [2 favorites]

Blazecock Pileon: "what is the generative aspect?"

I think they just say "generative" because that sounds cooler than "MIDI controlled graphics". Light organs are cool and all, but they never look as cool as what I see if I just listen closely and close my eyes.
posted by idiopath at 5:19 PM on February 18, 2010

I much prefer to just listen to music.
posted by rocket88 at 7:45 PM on February 18, 2010

It isn't a very interesting effect, really.
posted by anazgnos at 8:15 PM on February 18, 2010

http://www.lumia-wilfred.org/

Thomas Wilfred

Lumia the trailer
posted by warbaby at 9:43 PM on February 18, 2010

I totally have one of these except it uses terawatt lasers and a bright red Roland keytar for a controller. I like to play Mahler and Bach on it and blow up uninhabited planetoids from space, but sometimes a little Juan Atkins or Carl Craig is in order. When I hit the mod wheel it bends time like a wet noodle and conveniently punches right through the Schwarzschild radius of most singularities, which admittedly is pretty useless but looks really fucking cool if you can see in radio frequency wavelengths.
posted by loquacious at 11:06 PM on February 18, 2010 [2 favorites]

This is not "generative", I have no idea why they even used that term, it has nothing to do with this at all (it refers to music generated by mathematical algorithms). That said, it's pretty damn cool. vvvv is really starting to catch my interest, but I've already learned MAX/MSP and Supercollider to various extents and my brain can only hold so much.
posted by DecemberBoy at 12:35 AM on February 19, 2010

Is there any software that would allow me to "visualize" the midi input from my music keyboard? I would even consider buying software if it existed...
posted by mafted jacksie at 2:50 AM on February 19, 2010

DecemberBoy: "vvvv is really starting to catch my interest, but I've already learned MAX/MSP and Supercollider to various extents and my brain can only hold so much"

The cool thing is that the more you learn the less space each thing actually needs, because details keep repeating themselves. For example a majority of what sc and max/msp do, as I am sure you have figured out, is the same - the difference is mostly interface (with important details of course, like it is easier to do dynamic object creation / destruction in sc, and easier to sketch out an outline directly to functioning code in max/msp, sc's client/server architecture etc.). The difference between vvvv and max/msp is smaller in terms of interface, and larger in terms of functionality.
posted by idiopath at 7:07 AM on February 19, 2010

This is not "generative", I have no idea why they even used that term, it has nothing to do with this at all (it refers to music generated by mathematical algorithms).

It might be possible that the visual elements inherit some characteristics from what is displayed beforehand, but that's not clear from the demonstration or the description. I'm inclined not to think this is generative, but without seeing the code (or getting a clearer summary of it from its maker) it's hard to say conclusively.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 8:11 AM on February 19, 2010

midi visualizer
posted by warbaby at 8:30 AM on February 19, 2010

Blazecock Pileon: "It might be possible that the visual elements inherit some characteristics from what is displayed beforehand"

Yes, the image displayed for each note stays behind as an additive visual "echo", allowing you to see brighter spots where a note has been played more often. This is not the same as being generative. Generative implies a method of composition, something like this that simply reacts to an input stream without restructuring it is not generative.
posted by idiopath at 8:48 AM on February 19, 2010

Generative implies a method of composition, something like this that simply reacts to an input stream without restructuring it is not generative.

Agreed.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 8:57 AM on February 19, 2010

Generative implies a method of composition, something like this that simply reacts to an input stream without restructuring it is not generative.

Agreed.

My guess is they're referring to just the visual aspect as "generative", which I guess is true but way too confusing a choice of words. "Generative" has a specific meaning, especially among the subset of people who use software like vvvv. You'd think they could have found a better term to describe it.
posted by DecemberBoy at 10:51 AM on February 19, 2010

This whole "generative" thing could just be a translation issue. The original (like Pat Buchanan's speeches) is in German.
posted by warbaby at 11:53 AM on February 19, 2010 [1 favorite]