pianstallation notes

Notes on Pianstallation I created the sound art installation Pianstallation in the lobby of the Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics (CCRMA) at Stanford University as the final project for the Aspects of Sound in Art Summer Workshop, a one-week intensive led by Professors Christopher Jette and Elaine Buckholtz.

The installation was designed to “activate the space,� meaning to discover the full sonic potential of the space by analyzing its acoustics and resonance. In my case, this involved preparing the harp of a grand piano and the body of an upright piano (without the keyboard), which was made all the more harmonically compelling due to lack of tuning and upkeep.

I prepared the grand piano with coins, copper wire, bells, screws, and wooden balls. Most importantly, I placed three 9V DC motors in and outside the piano, inspired by the work of sound artist Zimoun. One DC motor was wedged between the strings with a hard cotton ball, attached to the end of a metal wire with the DC motor shaft. This motor played the prepared strings, creating rhythms that varied with the length of the strings.

The other two motors were suspended above the grand piano with string, and were available to any person who wished to perform the installation. Each of these motor shafts was coupled with a small length of copper wire threaded through a copper grommet. The motors were hung at opposite ends of the piano strings, allowing participants to activate the tuning pegs of the piano. It should be noted that these motors moved at a substantially faster pace than the central motor, which was slowed down by the greater length of the wire and cotton ball.

The upright piano was activated through the use of two tactile transducers attached to the back of the instrument. These transducers turned the body of the upright into a speaker that emitted the electronic processing.

The electronics, developed in Max/MSP, took the input signal from two contact microphones placed within the grand piano strings and fed them through multiple feedback loops of changing lengths. The sounds were also placed through a series of filters that activated the resonant qualities of the upright piano body. Lastly, the Max patch was programmed to slowly change overall volume and feedback loop qualities automatically.

Video and audio documentation are attached here. The Max/MSP patch for the work is attached here. I've also included photographs of the prepared grand piano harp below.