The picture above was made in 1919 during the Victory Liberty Loan and the lamp-like objects hanging above the crowd are so-called loud-speaking telephone receivers. The crowd had “the unusual sensation of having spoken messages come to them out of … read more
Transduction and Acoustic Radiator by Kristen Roos
Not only does Kristen Roos work with the frequency range audible for human beings, but also many other frequencies and vibrational phenomena are of high importance in his work. He makes different parts of the electromagnetic spectrum perceivable for human beings … read more
Loudspeakeroperas by Huba de Graaff
In her opera Lautsprecher Arnolt (2004) Huba de Graaff decided to have most roles played by loudspeakers. Only the main character—the writer, Arnolt Bronnen (1895-1959)—is played by a human actor, Marien Jongewaard. Arnolt himself is literally a “loud speaker”, screaming … read more
Points of Contact by Erfan Abdi
Big eyes as contact microphones, a bird cage as a loudspeaker, and two double spring objects of which one functions as a microphone and the other as a loudspeaker: this is the inventive set-up Erfan Abdi uses for his performance … read more
Vestiges of Discomposition and other works by Simon Whetham
Before Simon Whetham begins his performance, he asks you to close your eyes. However, I could not help but open my eyes briefly a few times. I saw Simon walking around slowly, holding a cymbal in his hands. A tactile … read more
The Springboard by Eric Leonardson
Eric Leonardson invented his Springboard in 1994. This instrument is an excellent example of how the simple addition of a contact microphone can create a beautiful sonic phantasmagoria out of ordinary objects. When you look at the instrument, you can … read more
Touche Nature by I-lly Cheng
Vibrations of loudspeaker membranes cause air pressure waves, which our hearing system perceives as sound. As long as they are travelling through the air, these sound waves remain invisible to human … read more
Small Movements by Adam Basanta
In his set-up for Small Movements (2016), Adam Basanta uses two microphones and seven loudspeakers in different combinations to create acoustic feedback. The sound of the feedback is surprisingly “clean”: it contains not much noise, but focuses essentially on a … read more
Speaker Dress by Pauchi Sasaki
Our clothes can be seen as a form of communication between ourselves and the outside world. They give a visual impression of who we are and how we would like to be seen by others. Pauchi Sasaki designs dresses which … read more
Apart by Oscar Bettison
As I describe in chapter three of Between Air and Electricity tuning forks are in some ways a kind of predecessor of microphones and loudspeakers. They can also be seen as a predated sine tone generator. Tuning forks were extremely … read more