Since I relaunched ContentSphere last week, I think it’s the perfect time to try other things on this playground. You should have noticed the various categories I’m now linking to – and one of them is music gear. Music production tools. Gadgets.
I always love to visit Oliver Chesler‘s blog “wire to the ear”. Better known as The Horrorist, he presents his own view on tech & gear. Which is pretty inspiring. The most current blog post features Tanner Galvin, a so called “circuit bender” from Portland, Oregon. More exactly, it’s the short documentary about Tanner, filmed by Craig Mederios. As Tanner himself describes it, by circuit bending you repurpose electronic circuits in a way they are not meant to be used. So he turns given up plastic toys into unique works of audio art.
© by Tanner Galvin: Circuit Bending Artistry
If you head over to Tanner Gavin’s blog and play the demo videos of his projects, you might understand my fascination about analogue electronics. Or you might listen to the music of Marius Libman aka “Copy” which is part of the documentation on Tanner.
It’s the sheer beauty of non-precision, of imperfection. Slight dissonances, that analogue humming of filters, condensators, oscillators, of voltage and noise. Actually, when making music, I think it was the sound I loved more than melodies or harmonies.
Tanner’s blog has quite a couple of photos of his projects. What he comes up with as musical hardware, is to be categorized somewhere between effect devices, synths and sound generators. He consequently realizes and builds projects with a clear goal in mind. It’s deliberate and certainly no arbitrarily acting. You might even approach him with your own project.
And then there’s one moment in the documentary when he mentions his passion about circuit bending. The freedom to realize your own ideas. The freedom in DIY that’s given to anyone by technology that’s available for everyone. If you’re missing experience, browse the net. Try. Learn. Try again.
It’s the disruptive energy and positive impact of technology on inspiration and motivation. Now, DIY can bring back passion and authenticity. It’s up to you.
