We introduce the concept instrumentness as a quality of human-computer interfaces. Instrumentness points to the way musical instruments are controlled and conceptualized through values such as virtuosity and playability, which are important for computer-mediated creative work supporting development in use beyond what is initially designed for. The paper performs a conceptual investigation into qualities in software interfaces that support creativity, supported by analysis of, and interviews with, musical composers. Instrumentness is explained through discussions of materiality and metonymy as central strategies for computer mediated creativity. The paper is contributing to an investigation of the aesthetics of use in relation to software, pointing to alternative values, differing from traditional usability, which are also relevant in creative work outside art and music composition.
The authors examine how materiality emerges from complex chains of mediation in creative software use. The primarily theoretical argument is inspired and illustrated by interviews with two composers of electronic music. The authors argue that computer mediated activity should not primarily be understood in terms of simple mediation, but rather as chains of complex mediation in which the dominant form of representation is metonymy rather than metaphor.
This article presents the interactive sound installation Ekkomaten, a machine originally designed to let people explore an 18th century soundscape as part of a historical festival in Aarhus, Denmark. We present the design of the installation focusing on three core concerns when designing interactive listening situations; the physical interface, the site-specific soundscape and the affectively engaging listening experience. We then provide a detailed video analysis of the richness of use of the installation, focusing on the interaction and ways of listening facilitated by the setup. Based on this, we highlight the ways in which Ekkomaten has provided an interactive listening situation engaging people affectively and intellectually both in the exploration of sonified stories about the 18th century as well as of the installation in itself as an interactive machine for listening. Further, we reflect on important insights when designing interactive listening situations, critically reflect on the data and evaluation and outline a future experiment with the Ekkomaten infrastructure. Author KeywordsAudio design; interactive sound design; site-specific design; urban computing; cultural heritage; affective engagement; interactive environments and installations ACM Classification Keywords H.5 m. Information interfaces and presentation
This article addresses how the notion of the echo has worked as a design fiction concept in the crafting of the interactive installation, Ekkomaten. Ekkomaten is an affectively engaging listening machine that lets people probe the narrative potential of Store Torv, in Aarhus, Denmark. Through its physical manifestation and conceptual framing, Ekkomaten offers an auditory and situated experience of the 18th century through six site-specific echoes that engage its users as protagonists in the exploration of an imagined narrative space emerging from the intersection of fact and fiction and the infra-and extraordinary. As an electronic design object, Ekkomaten points both back and forward in time, questioning our current understanding of the 18th century, science fiction's previous visions of the future, and current ideas about possible post-digital futures.
In this paper we describe the design of and concept behind the interactive urban installation Ekkomaten. Ekkomaten was designed for an 18 th century festival that took place in Aarhus, Denmark in March 2012. The installation functions as a listening device that can supposedly capture and play echoes from the past. The idea behind Ekkomaten is to provide an auditory interface that explores the use of sound to document and shape the perception of a particular location. By operating the physical machine people can uncover site-specific echoes in the form of 'auditory tableaux's that are inspired by historical events dramatized as radio plays. Through its physical design inspired by 18 th century phantasy machines and pre-radar listening devices, Ekkomaten engages people affectively in the interaction with the hidden stories of the city.
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