The Creators Project: A conductor’s sweeping arm movements inform not only the orchestra but a fluttering cluster of abstract geometric patterns in a new experimental motion tracking video. The visual motion concept is by German author, musician and multimedia designer, Tobias Gremmler, but instead of trailing the movements of a kung fu drill like last time, Gremmler follows a conductor's baton.
4 comments:
Wow, this is really cool. I remember when I was watching a show during a dress rehearsal from the first row in the audience (where I normally hate to sit) I had a good few of the conductor in the pit. Watching her conduct was very strange, she looked like a wizard trying to cast spells. This changes the oddity of conducting an orchestra and makes it look really beautiful. I love that they are doing this with new technology, and its highlighting someone that is often overlooked in a production. It looks a like when you take pictures with sparklers, where the movement causes blurring and it is captured in a picture. I want to know what the next step, if anything is, to come of this. Can they take the motion tracking and have different effects come from it technology wise. Because the conductor makes those movements to have the musicians play, can they take that in a technology stand point where the movement causes something else.
The video was absolutely entrancing. After looking at the winch system for Ragtime earlier today this is the second time I’ve said, “this was designed by someone much smarter than me”. It reminds me of the music video from Light It Up (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2LpOUwca94) in it’s life like quality. In elementary school the teacher would play music as background noise to work to and the music program would open a tab with a visual representation of the music. It would work in a radial pattern and change size color and variance depending on the beat of the song. It was so intriguing that we would stop working to watch it so the teacher always had to turn off the video part. While the videos are amazing it makes me wonder how appropriate it is to be played at an orchestra, one of the few opportunities where music takes center stage and is the key component. The video might be overstepping accompanying the music to having the orchestra became the background music. It is spectacular and an incredible piece at a music festival or performance but it might attract too much attention to be part of an orchestra.
Article Rating:
10/10
Notes:
Was a little dark, could use a lamp or two.
My first thoughts were, “This reminds me of the Visualizer on ITunes”. When I was a little kid to well into my high school life, I loved to take some part of my day, listen to music, and be entranced by that visualizer. I always choose songs that, in my opinion, were epic, had a lot of ranging volumes to, and that I could image a story to go with it. For me it was like look into musical fantasy world which was expressed through visual movements of color and sound. So seeing something like this really excites me, because I always imaged a Conductor as a storyteller, controlling each instrument/player, commanding the story and giving life to something marvelous. I used to do orchestra in elementary school and middle school, and I very well remember admiring my Conductors. It was almost as if we had a spell enchanted on us, and with utter trust and respect, followed movements of our leader. So to see this is really surreal, and very organic. In the one particular beginning GIF, I know that I see colorful smoke, but the movements of it are very human. This is brilliant stuff, and I would love to see some of my favorite songs to be conducted and turned into another level of art.
When I first saw this I thought the pieces reminded me of the screen savers that I used to have on my old laptop. I personally think that is a good thing, I love the rhythmic nature of these pieces and the stories and experiences behind them. I have always been interested in unusual sources of inspiration and I think this is definitely our there. I also think that the execution of this work is what really sets it apart. Every one of these pieces is beautifully rendered, precise, and methodical, which is actually sort of like the movements of a conductor, and I really like that. I think this is the type of art that makes you go "Oh, I never thought of that before" and to take a closer look at something that you might not have been interested before. I personally, now want to go watch videos of conductors and imagine what sort of sculpture might result.
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