I think that the technique of recording is crucial in creating sound for VR. Sound is very powerful and can completely change the experience – from taking away the “reality” of an event to making it fully, or almost fully, immersive. Although there are plugins (like Ambihead or others available in FMod or Unity) that can create the impression of real-life ambisonic experience, the process of recording is crucial as it adds up to the quality of audio and minimises the post-production time.
‘OTHERWORLD is a virtual island paradise, home to sixteen unique VR experiences, accessed only from our growing network of city centre metaverse portals‘(https://www.other.world/)
As a group, we decided to go there and experience it together. Some of us did not have any VR experience prior to that day, including me.
I am not usually posting toilet pictures of myself, but I think it is relevant for this post, as it shows the character of the place and its attention to detail in designing the space made for otherworldly experiences. And how it contributes to the whole event. It was a white infinite mirror cubicle that was filled with actual and reflected lines that dominated the space, dividing it into small, pixel-like squares. The pattern was slightly distorted (I like distortion) by the circular neon white lamp attached to the ceiling. If I have moved a bit more to the left I would’ve had a white halo.
From the very moment you enter the place, it seems like a small trip into the future, maybe 20-30 (or maybe 5??). The space is not too voluminous, as a large number of personal pods fill it. The furniture (waiting sofas), walls and pod doors are all white, and the blue UV light colours it into something that reminds me of a sun bed. Unsurprisingly I had to download an app, that enabled me to enter the system for counting points of all the players (participants) to create a ranking. Our names were on the board with the time slots, and we were split into groups of 2. Everyone had their own pod but pares were connected through the headset and could talk to each other to communicate and collaborate on tasks.
We had an introduction by one of the staff members who was dressed all white and had a headset that was used to communicate with us in case of any problems. As I was already pretty overwhelmed, I did not focus on what they were explaining and entered my pod. After fitting the headset and the handles (hands?) I was left alone and locked in my pod. The experience has started.
I struggled for quite a while to figure out how the handles worked, I think I had put them in the wrong hands. I could hear my companion and we started from the initial scene, which was a serene landscape with animals walking around, flowers and a platform that took us up. The temperature was also changing, and when we went closer to the unidentified source of light, the change in temperature could be sensed. I could feel the exact same feeling I get when taking the lift and from that moment I became a little bit anxious. Fast forward, after some time we entered the zombie world and started getting attacked by half-dead holograms and had to try and shoot as many of them as we could. This was the first time I paid attention to the sound. It was very helpful in creating the atmosphere of horror, but this didn’t come as a surprise, as sound itself has a great ability to induce fear. It turned out that this was one of the most difficult experiences available so we jumped into the deep water and got beaten up by zombies pretty bad. Anxiety was real.
The next and last stage was being a part of a restaurant game, where we had to prepare meals shown on screen and sent them to tables. This one required much more communication and collaboration skills, as each and one of us had access to different elements of the game and food items.
The whole experience lasted 25 minutes. I and my partner managed to experience 3 different worlds. I feel like the time has stretched a little bit and it felt longer, probably because of the vastness of encountered emotions, pictures and sounds in such a small amount of time.
What I found quite hard was to remain in one place. This was creating dissonance in my brain,the hands were used for every move and a few times my legs started moving and I tripped over my bag etc.
From the sound perspective, I feel like it’s crucial in creating the experience. As I did not notice it much this whole time, I assume it was well-designed and had a good background. There is definitely space for improvement, although my experience was only limited to those 3 worlds which I picked pretty much randomly. I also found the headset uncomfortable, it kept sliding down my head and I also struggled with the handles. I definitely screamed a few times and heard people screaming from other pods. I guess it could be good for team bonding as there are some collaborative worlds and you can book special corporate events. I would not recommend it to everyone, especially people who have motion disease, height fright or any similar conditions. Overall it was definitely something new and I am grateful for doing it, but I doubt think I will ever do it again.
Clubs are more than just places where people come to dance. Clubs are spaces where the purest forms of human expression come out and play the main role. Where human interactions happen on a different level than in everyday life. Where everyone can be what they are deeply striving to be, where release and catharsis often happens. People are not scared of each other anymore, and the embodiment of a simple rhythm let everyone exist together but also as a separate, liberated beings in the same moment. Everyday life is often intense and stressful and we very often get out of our bodies and function automatically, not focusing on the way they feel and react to what’s happening. We shut down and try to obstruct any (physical and emotional) pain from passing through, trying to redirect our concentration to something else.
Tara Brach – an American psychologist and meditation teacher is talking a lot about how important the connection mind-and-body is in context of neuroscience and mindfulness. ” Awareness of sensations is considered the first foundation of mindfulness because whatever we experience – feelings, emotions, thoughts and sensory perceptions – also arise as sensations in our body. When mindful of our body, we open to the changing stream of sensations without grasping or resistance. The experience might be fear or joy, it might be the intensity of aliveness, or it might be numbness.” (T.Brach)
When ecstasy became a drug of choice in dance clubs, the social dynamics on the dance floor has changed. Many (straight) man, who were previously embarrassed or too drunk to dance, appeared on the dance floor. The drug managed to break the mental blockade of fear of embarrassment and being judged, that was preventing people from freeing their bodies in dance.
“The body of capital is a rigid body, the mechanised body of work: upright and ordered. For some it is a sedentary body, which has its buttocks firmly rooted to a chair. For others it is a repetitive body carrying out the same tasks over and over again or it can be the strong but tired body of physical labour. Each body is ordered by the requirements of its works, by the expectations of bosses, by the rules of the corporation, by the habit of the job. People’s bodies are controlled in time and in space, too still or slouched and they’re lazy, too manic and they’re disruptive.(…)The space itself can grant you the freedom to become bigger, more expressive, more outrageous and the more people participate and reveal this [sensual] freedom through their participation the easier it becomes for others to follow the suit”. )…) Grey flees the building to be replaced by vivid reds, burning oranges, iridescent blues and and slither of topaz. You ain’t in Kansas no more. You’re on the dance floor and it is fearsome fine. (Jackson, 2004, p. 21)
“It was not until some 50 years later that research on individual differences in music preferences resurfaced. However, whereas Cattell and his colleagues assumed that music preferences reflected unconscious motives, urges, and desires (Cattell & Anderson, 1953; Cattell & Saunders, 1954), the contemporary view is that music preferences are manifestations of explicit psychological traits, possibly in interaction with specific situational experiences, needs, or constraints. More specifically, current research on music preferences draws from interactionist theories (e.g., Buss, 1987; Swann, Rentfrow, & Guinn, 2002) by hypothesizing that people seek musical environments that reinforce and reflect their personalities, attitudes, and emotions.”
“It seems reasonable to suppose that music preferences are shaped by psychological dispositions, social interactions as well as exposure to popular media and cultural trends. Thus, preferences for a particular style of music may vary as a function of personality traits, social class, ethnicity, country of residence, and cohort, as well as the culture-specific associations with that style of music. However, the reliance on genre-based preference measures makes it difficult to examine music preferences among people from different generations and cultures because their knowledge and familiarity with the genres will vary significantly. The present findings suggest that audio recordings of music can be used effectively to study music preferences. This finding should help pave the way for future research by enabling researchers to develop music-preference measures that are not language based and can therefore be administered to individuals of different age groups, social classes, and cultures. Audio-based music preference measures that include musical excerpts from a wide array of genres, time periods, and cultures will help researchers further explore the structure of music-preferences and ascertain whether the MUSIC model is universal.”
The social connotations of particular musical styles are shaped by culture and society, and those connotations change over time. For example, jazz music now means something very different than it did 100 years ago; whereas jazz is currently thought of as sophisticated and creative, earlier generations considered it uncivilized and lewd. This raises questions about the stability of the MUSIC model across generations. Are the factors cohort- and culture- specific, or do they transcend space and time?
The social connotations of particular musical styles are shaped by culture and society, and those connotations change over time. For example, jazz music now means something very different than it did 100 years ago; whereas jazz is currently thought of as sophisticated and creative, earlier generations considered it uncivilized and lewd. This raises questions about the stability of the MUSIC model across generations. Are the factors cohort- and culture- specific, or do they transcend space and time? One potentially fruitful direction would be to expand research on music attributes to focus more on the affective aspects of music preference
Exposure effects. Exposures shape our musical preferences. We tend to prefer the music that we are most familiar with. One explanation is that repeated exposures can be considered as a form of classical conditioning that can increase the liking of stimuli through a process of conditioning
SOUND / CLUB – RECONNECTION, GOING BACK TO THE ESSENCE
Having watched above videos I learnt, that sound files created in DAW, that are meant to be processed in FMod and Unity to create an interactive audio-visual experience like VR or games, have to be edited in a certain way. We need to consider, how we are going to render our music, how is it going to be structured and how is it going to transition. Transitioning is crucial as this is what makes the composition different from any other sort of music. We should export each individual track as a separate audio object, so we are then able to mix all the tracks together smoothly when it comes to interactive process. If we, for example, want music to change after a certain action of the player, we have to divide the track to the same length parts (each assigned to one action) and make sure that each part of the track can mix with another in a random manner. It’s worth remembering to record each segment of the track we want as a separate audio file with a reverb and a tail, so it helps the tracks transition smoothly.
I have made some samples of randomised music that would work as a background music in an environment I am designing it for. Although it is not possible to make an interactive work without the visual part of it, methods I used would work in designing an interactive sound.
Plan of the whole VR experience consisting of one main box that the has 4 parts- different worlds that are non-linear, surrealistic and each has different theme.
Plan for the Scene D by Zedan – non-euclidean geometry room
Example of background music sent by VR student
Example of non-euclidean geometry experience
I have created 3 files, that can exist as separate tracks and also be played or mixed together. They complement each other in a way and could be used for exploring space like the one above.
track 1track 2track 3
Tracks 1 and 2 are the same track, but tweaked and differently mixed. I also used an additional plugin in track 2 (demo version hence missing fragments of audio. They sound the best mixed together. Track 3 is rattling sound that could be used for touching / picking up objects.
track 4
Track 4 is an example of how to mix those 3 tracks together and make it interactive with the scene. Each of the tracks could be assigned to an object or event, and become more prominent / distorted / quiet depending on the action it would be assigned for. Rendering all 3 tracks separately should allow to make an interactive soundtrack in FMOD.
In this composition, as it was made for non-euclidean geometry, I used non-linear approach. I Polyrhythmic, irregular beat and out of tune, wonky melodies alongside organic sounding rattling can be used to explore a space that is mysterious and uncertain, like the non-euclidean box VR experience.
The idea for virtual reality experience we agreed on at this point is world consisting of 2 cubes comprising 4 different worlds each. Each of us in the group will have one of the worlds. The concepts for each cube are different. One of them will be more user controlled, where the worlds resemble computer game, with objects that can be moved which leads to a shift, objects and actions will have sounds assigned to them. Second one will be more abstract, with sound being shown by visual algorithms.
Below pictures show the proposal was made by one of my group colleagues, Zedan.
screenshot of proposal made by Zedan.
I was asked to create four one-minute long audio tracks. Street noise, people talking, calmer music and more intense music.
Calm musicIntense musicPeople on the streetStreet noise
I though it would be beneficial to try different types of sounds that my be used in virtual reality like music. I used field recordings from the streets which I made while walking. It gives the recording a natural panning effect, just as we get when we hear the sounds of our environment while passing by. I have yet not received the feedback but hopefully this method of recording will be suitable for working in virtual reality using audio visualising software.
In this talk, UK djs, artists and activists whose roots are from the region of SWANA – South-West Asia and North Africa. SWANA is a new, decolonial word replacing the Middle East, but as it always is with all the terms that are trying to concise and homogenise large groups of people from the huge area – it’s not perfect. There is still a lot of space for improvement and reimagining our vocabulary and its a big part of decolonisation. They talk about inclusivity, social justice, discrimination, orientalism and much more.
Music from the SWANA region is experiencing a renaissance, and so, as I call it, club colonization begins. There are a number of artists that are playing and sampling the music from the region, touring the world and making lots of money, without even being from the region. Again, just like with techno music, we are experiencing the colonization of clubs and music. White man has found its way again to exploit non-white culture and steal from it wearing white gloves.
The panellists, all living and working in the UK, talk a lot about the privilege, knowledge and access that should be used systemically by them and others, to include and educate others so further colonization can be stopped and what happened already – slowly reversed. Calling each other out within the community, working on those communities from the very foundations, organising small grassroots events and promoting artist who are not lucky enough to have the platfom – these are just some of the ways discussed in this pannel.
COMPETITION SHOULD NEVER BE MORE IMPORTANT THAN COLLABORATION
Frankie C. Fultz – The Return Of Drexciya album cover
I would like to mainly focus on the music that will be a soundtracks for my work is going to be about. I will start with a song, haven’t chosen what will it be yet, but a piece from the early times of Detroit techno, maybe something by Drexciya or Underground resistance.
I have to decide the order of the music and how to mix it together into the collage of interviews, talks, excerpts from movies and my own voice. Maybe I will use a speech generator? I haven’t decided yet. Do I quote in audio paper or shall I leave it for the script? Those few questions still need to be answered at this point.
I would like everyone, even those who are “not into it”, feel the power of electronic music and its potential for catalysing social change. I will try to achieve this by choosing the right tracks and creating a story out of different people’s voices. I feel like its very important to include the historical and socioeconomic cross-sections to help the audience approach this topic. This leads to uderstanding the common ground of all the minorities that found the refuge and grew out of ashes thanks to the underground resistance of techno culture.
Current affairs are fertile soil for this culture to grow – discrimination, racism and xenophobia to name a few are spread all around the world. Its ambiguity reflects in being the resistance movement of oppressed minorities but also a lucrative white-dominated business almost entirely deprived of its core values and roots.
This poignant story framed in less than 15 minutes-long audio essay is a great example of using 2 methods of communication simultaneously and creating a wholesome and concise piece of work. Sounds recorded on the island and the way they are mixed with the narrator’s voice, turned up and down to create dramaturgy, are forming the landscape of Armager in a subtle but convincing manner. It’s very interesting, considering how the story unveils..
It seems like this topic has no much coverage in english-spoken media. I tried to research the subject more, but after realising I was reading (translated from Danish) what essentially turned out to be a very long and complex electric toothbrush advertisement, I decided to only focus on the contents of the above broadcast.
It’s a testimony of isolation, prejudice, media manipulation and resistance through the use of sonic techniques. It reminded me of what I referred to in my previous post – language as a tool of propaganda and, consecutively, oppression.
Activists from the island to fight deception of the media that were portraying Amager as a sinister and dangerous place and its population as a second class citizens, consisting mainly of thieves and hooligans. They installed small vibrating motors all around the Amager, especially in the most famous locations. Those motors created a hum that could be red by sesimograph and therefore, became the islands watermark, that would help to debunk recordings allegedly made on the island that were often just a media hoax.
Isolated citizens used their language to distinguish people coming from outside as they became wearier. They created several variations on the accent that would help them recognise each other. In this case, the language became a form of resistance.
The analogy between the people of Detroit and the isolated population of Armager can’t be unseen. Both used technology and sound to survive in hostile and discriminating environments. They created a sonic code so they could communicate within their communities, a way of resisting their oppressor.
