Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Escondido impromptu

EEGsynth jaw-jamming in the woods of Escondido

International collective 1 + 1 = 3 presented EEGsynth at A Ship in the Woods in April. - Image by R.J. Brooks
International collective 1 + 1 = 3 presented EEGsynth at A Ship in the Woods in April.

A crowd has gathered around Per Huttner. He stands upright in a dark room, not moving, eyes fixed on a white sheet of paper in his hand, wires snaking from his skull. Doctor Stephen Whitmarsh manipulates Huttner’s brain chatter on a glowing console and relays the thought forms to Jean-Louis Huhta, the musician. There, Huttner’s recital of Samuel Beckett’s Ohio Impromptu returns in echoing, disembodied fragments. It’s not the beginning of a science-fiction cyber-ritual, but rather a sound-and-technology experiment called EEGsynth by European collective 1 + 1 = 3, guest residents at art house A Ship in the Woods this past April.

The EEGsynth takes signals from Huttner’s jaw movement along with alpha and theta brain-wave activity, runs them through Whitmarsh’s software, and processes them via Huhta’s synthesizer patches to create a live loop of distorted reading.

Sponsored
Sponsored
Dr. Stephen Whitmarsh (left) created software to convert EEG signals into audio samples.

“This way of dealing with brain data in real-time analysis and feedback is a field by itself, especially as these technologies become more available,” Dr. Whitmarsh, who holds degrees in experimental psychology and neuroscience from universities in the Netherlands, says in a Q&A session after the performance. “A big part of my mind while I was looking at the signal was just praying that it would work. To see that it works and that we’ve created this interface I think shows we’ve found a lot of solutions that will be encountered by scientists who are studying this technology, so we plan to present them in a scientific paper.”

“I must say that tonight felt a bit muddled compared to the sessions we’ve been having this week,” says Huhta, a Swedish composer and acid-techno musician. “There have been much clearer instances. For me, it’s an ongoing process of delving into this machine to see what I can do with this signal I’m receiving from Per.”

“It’s very different every time,” agrees Huttner, an artist from Sweden. “I think we are interested less in control and more in this element of surprise. There are a lot of these interfaces where people are paralyzed and can play music and things like that. We’re more interested in saying, ‘Okay, the body has this voice that we’re used to, but the body has other voices, and how can we play with that?’ I mean, I never knew what my jaw sounded like before, and that’s interesting, so it’s more about throwing ourselves off the cliff and seeing what comes up.”

Curator Lianne Mueller says A Ship in the Woods will be focusing on events and participation.

This intersection of experimentation, artistic vision, and scientific mindfulness is exemplary of the projects that A Ship in the Woods curates in their quarterly expositions and residencies. The nonprofit relocated from Del Mar to Escondido last August, taking several months to revamp the mid-century-turned-modern-residential estate and surrounding 2.5 acres of jungle gardens before their grand opening on June 4. The event featured 25 artists and drew around 600 attendees.

A guest made bubbly cocktails in tribute to the late Prince.

“We’re here in San Diego to stay,” curator Lianne Mueller later told me as guests sipped bubbling dry-ice cocktails made by a friend of the house and dubbed “Purple Rain” in honor of a recently departed icon of rock nobility. “Now that we own the house [the Del Mar location was leased], we are building a recording studio and performance space. We’re planning more workshops and much more of a retreat atmosphere. We’ll be engaging and learning from our guests and audience. The emphasis is on events and even more, participation. Engaging on a personal level.”

Place

Ship in the Woods

3007 Felicita Road, Escondido

Engage the new stage with a day-show from British cow-post-punk prototypes the Mekons on September 25 with Sun Foot (Panache) and Sam Coomes (Quasi, Elliott Smith).

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

India Hawthorne is common in coastal gardens, Citrus trees are in full bloom

The vernal equinox is on March 19
International collective 1 + 1 = 3 presented EEGsynth at A Ship in the Woods in April. - Image by R.J. Brooks
International collective 1 + 1 = 3 presented EEGsynth at A Ship in the Woods in April.

A crowd has gathered around Per Huttner. He stands upright in a dark room, not moving, eyes fixed on a white sheet of paper in his hand, wires snaking from his skull. Doctor Stephen Whitmarsh manipulates Huttner’s brain chatter on a glowing console and relays the thought forms to Jean-Louis Huhta, the musician. There, Huttner’s recital of Samuel Beckett’s Ohio Impromptu returns in echoing, disembodied fragments. It’s not the beginning of a science-fiction cyber-ritual, but rather a sound-and-technology experiment called EEGsynth by European collective 1 + 1 = 3, guest residents at art house A Ship in the Woods this past April.

The EEGsynth takes signals from Huttner’s jaw movement along with alpha and theta brain-wave activity, runs them through Whitmarsh’s software, and processes them via Huhta’s synthesizer patches to create a live loop of distorted reading.

Sponsored
Sponsored
Dr. Stephen Whitmarsh (left) created software to convert EEG signals into audio samples.

“This way of dealing with brain data in real-time analysis and feedback is a field by itself, especially as these technologies become more available,” Dr. Whitmarsh, who holds degrees in experimental psychology and neuroscience from universities in the Netherlands, says in a Q&A session after the performance. “A big part of my mind while I was looking at the signal was just praying that it would work. To see that it works and that we’ve created this interface I think shows we’ve found a lot of solutions that will be encountered by scientists who are studying this technology, so we plan to present them in a scientific paper.”

“I must say that tonight felt a bit muddled compared to the sessions we’ve been having this week,” says Huhta, a Swedish composer and acid-techno musician. “There have been much clearer instances. For me, it’s an ongoing process of delving into this machine to see what I can do with this signal I’m receiving from Per.”

“It’s very different every time,” agrees Huttner, an artist from Sweden. “I think we are interested less in control and more in this element of surprise. There are a lot of these interfaces where people are paralyzed and can play music and things like that. We’re more interested in saying, ‘Okay, the body has this voice that we’re used to, but the body has other voices, and how can we play with that?’ I mean, I never knew what my jaw sounded like before, and that’s interesting, so it’s more about throwing ourselves off the cliff and seeing what comes up.”

Curator Lianne Mueller says A Ship in the Woods will be focusing on events and participation.

This intersection of experimentation, artistic vision, and scientific mindfulness is exemplary of the projects that A Ship in the Woods curates in their quarterly expositions and residencies. The nonprofit relocated from Del Mar to Escondido last August, taking several months to revamp the mid-century-turned-modern-residential estate and surrounding 2.5 acres of jungle gardens before their grand opening on June 4. The event featured 25 artists and drew around 600 attendees.

A guest made bubbly cocktails in tribute to the late Prince.

“We’re here in San Diego to stay,” curator Lianne Mueller later told me as guests sipped bubbling dry-ice cocktails made by a friend of the house and dubbed “Purple Rain” in honor of a recently departed icon of rock nobility. “Now that we own the house [the Del Mar location was leased], we are building a recording studio and performance space. We’re planning more workshops and much more of a retreat atmosphere. We’ll be engaging and learning from our guests and audience. The emphasis is on events and even more, participation. Engaging on a personal level.”

Place

Ship in the Woods

3007 Felicita Road, Escondido

Engage the new stage with a day-show from British cow-post-punk prototypes the Mekons on September 25 with Sun Foot (Panache) and Sam Coomes (Quasi, Elliott Smith).

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Pet pig perches in pocket

Escondido doula gets a taste of celebrity
Next Article

Coyote tracks in frail San Diego avocado grove

Second place winner in Reader neighborhood writing contest
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.