SculpTon

by Alberto Boem

sculpTon is an autonomous sonic object which uses the metaphor of sound sculpting for connecting physical information in digital audio. By manipulating the object the user can literally sculpt the sound through a real-time sound synthesis which reverberates the object structure. This
project explores a novel approach compared to previous the work and research around the topic of sound sculpting: the user gesture is not externally sensed but within the artifact itself. sculpTon is an attempt for the development of a new kind of embodied musical instrument, which combines multidimensional control, tangible and malleable characteristics with an organic handling.

At the actual stage of development sculpTon is presented in the JellyFish version and it is connected to a guitar-like pedal board. Beyond the idea of control, sculpTon is a musical interface for live performance and improvisation.

Like the first pioneers of electronic instruments said, the composition is the schematic of the instrument, sculpTon tries to push this idea into the domain of digital music and tangibility: the structure of the object, it’s shape, haptic, configuration and behavior represents the score.