#livescoreproject

Now, I can’t talk about specifics but for As The Crow Flies I’m developing a internet connected device which can turn trigger lights and solenoids to fire as part of a sequenced timer. I’m happy to say the hardware aspect is (mostly) finished and this blog is going to explain the difficulties and lessons learned. Starting from the top, I knew from my use of LED’s in the past that any technology that needs to be installed in a space will have to be modular in some way. That is, the controller is self contained but all the lights and solenoids can be detached so as to allow for easy transportation (no tangled wires), repair and installation. Luckily I had some old mixing desk consoles lying around from previous projects which required parts scrounging (eBay spares and repairs section is great for cheap mixing desks). These mixers had very nice phono/RCA connectors on the back, supposed to be for audio, but since they just carry power and ground they’re easily adapted for all kinds of uses. Using my trusty soldering iron and some intense wiggling the connectors were detached from their old circuits and placed onto a fresh sheet of velo board (a kind of prototyping surface for electronics). Next I drilled holes into the laser cut enclosure. Pretty simple really, just 6 holes for the lights and solenoids to attach to and a couple for power connections. Now it was time to get down into the nuts and bolts of the circuits. I’ve done high-ish power circuits before, so I was familiar with the basic set up. The solenoids require diodes across them, which stop any electricity kicking back when they turn off. This took a bunch of time to work out the logistics of, especially since it was x5. Other than that, getting the circuit set up was fairly simple. I used TIP120’s for the MOSFETS, 10 in total. These are all connected to a Teensy LC which is my microcontroller. I tried a couple of lower power microcontrollers but they didn’t give nearly as much kick to the solenoids. Paired to the Teensy is a esp8266 wifi chip. This will be programmed to receive signals from Dunoon or Ghent. I tried to use 3.3v voltage regulators to power these but the heat generated was just too much for me to be comfortable with. As a compromise I just went with a second power supply, its a bit ugly but it works and it will be stable. Yesterday we chatted a bunch about the the “instrument” will be displayed on stage. I’ve drawn up a bunch of plans with dimensions but we’re still not exactly sure what to go for.

Photos to follow.

A helpful little list of research surrounding instruction scores; the framework of our workshops with the livescore project. 

Kyle and I were asked to present at the Time To Shine Digital Learning Event, alongside the other six projects receiving funding from the initiative.

It was a great way of learning more about what other projects are doing, discussing the differences and similarities between what we are doing, raising larger contextual problems, particularly that surrounding the idea of ‘digital technology,’ and what that actually means, as well as giving us a unique opportunity to play around with some of the other project’s inventions which included 360 videos and a musical pizza box! 

Alongside us, was Teenagers and Toddlers ; a digital intergenerational project where young people have the opportunity to create a product with, and for, an early years audience.

Sensatronic Lab ; a digital project for young people overcoming barriers of disability, and or social and economic exclusion. It enables them to create a unique ‘Sensory Orchestra’ of tactile electronic instruments and sound sculptures that can then be shared and used by a wide audience through a range of mediums, including live performance and audio and visual distribution. Sparks, Drifts and Rain enables young people from Argyll and Bute to take the lead on digital media cross over projects. The young people have chosen to create digital works on themes around the landscape and seascape, they are surrounded by. Participants will be supported by a number of collaboration partners in various digital arts.

Hot Chocolate Trust : Unlock Digital which engages young people with high-quality digital arts opportunities, encourage collaborations between young people and artists across multiple disciplines and provide them with access to the arts, cultural activities and practitioners around Dundee and beyond. The young people are resourced as contributors to, rather than consumers of, digital technologies promoting self-expression, collaboration, learning and creative play.

Shaper Caper: cmd__v.2 (Command Shift Version 2) is a dance, multi-arts and projection mapping project that places young people at the heart of curating, organising, creating and delivering digital art works.

Greg and I ran a one-off workshop at Dalry Primary School in Edinburgh. Each workshop was around two hours long, and functioned a little bit differently to the other workshops we have worked on with children and young people. 

Whilst all the other workshops we have worked have had the intention of establishing a network of children and young people that we can work with throughout the course of the project and feed into the performance of As The Crow Flies, this particular workshop was a stand alone endeavour. It was a great opportunity for us to explore the idea of instruction scores with a completely new group and for them to access it in a completely different context. They had no prior engagement with the project, nor would they necessarily continue to have, so it was lovely to create something within two hours just for that group.  We worked through playing games with instruction scores, making our own instruction scores and small instruction score performances. 

During June, after the work-in-progress, we went straight back into working with young people and went to the Isle of Coll.

It was an incredible experience for the whole team to work with the children on the island. Lisa and Lou also joined us from Argyll Youth Arts Hub, so it was lovely to really connect and spend time with a project partner. We worked with 9 children (of 19 at the Primary School) over the course of two days. The children were incredibly open and creative and we were invited to join them in afternoon games in the sea; which included fishing for scallops!  There isn’t much more that I can say that would contribute any more than the following photos will depict. It was a beautiful and incredibly inspiring couple of days. 

Since we visited Belgium, we have been creating videos with each group we work with which are centered around different interpretations of Instruction Scores. 

Here are just a few from our visit to Dunoon. Keep your eyes peeled for some from our trip to the Isle of Coll....