What if the needle moved instead of the record? What if the separation between playback device and instrument merged? Using individual sounds created from various spots around the city of Los Angeles, this invention turns a mobile device running the Synesthetic Din app into an instrument for the manipulation of track playback. Loaded into the app are three noise “tracks,” each consisting of six individual sounds that have been prepared separately in advance. The composition of the six individual sounds is then determined by the color information being received through the devices camera. The app is an exploration of a different approach to composing an album. The mechanical device looks at how the album can be replayed by the city.
For installation during the final thesis exhibition, colored vinyl bands were designed to reflect the colors of the city one would typically find while looking down at various curbs, graphics, messages, lines and other surfaces.