Autonomous Robots

Roboterstück (2012)

An installation for nine agents performing Ajay Kapur’s NotomotoN (an 18-armed robotic percussionist), in which a new composition is generated every fifteen minutes, with each performance usually lasting between 3 and 5 minutes.

The agents negotiate a texture from 16 possible combinations – based upon the following features: slow/fast; sparse/dense; loud/soft; rhythmic/arhythmic. Once a texture is agreed upon, they perform their interpretation of that texture. Agents become bored easily, and may drop out; alternatively, they may enter at any time. Once over half of the agents have decided that they are no longer interested in the specific texture, the section stops, and a new texture is negotiated. When the same texture has appeared three times, the performance is complete.

Presented at the Musical Metacreation Weekend, Sydney, Australia June 2013

Presented at New Interfaces for Musical Expression, London, England July 2014