Music and Cats / Book of Abstracts - Catalog - Page 18
Abstracts
Panel 3: Cats as Listeners
AI
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13:50 – 14:05
Sonic Catnip
Composing Biphonation Through Pure Data
James Edward Armstrong, Akira Brown, J. Harry Whalley / University
for the Creative Arts
In December 2020, a TikTok video started a new
viral trend involving affectionate cats and an
obscure ambient-electronic track for the early
2000s emerged. User jennimorose discovered that
“Window,” the opening track from the 2004 album
In A Safe Place by The Album Leaf, would cause her
pet cat to stop what she was doing and seek
petting. David Teie (2021) drew comparisons
between the synth sounds in the track to
biphonation in mice – the ability to produce two
frequencies at the same time. In “Window,” the
harmonic interval of the main synth is a major
10th, similar the vocalization of mice, with a
fundamental vocal sound and higher register
whistle. The effect may create a feeling of intrigue
amongst felines, as recognized through the TikTok
trend affecting domestic cats. This research
project explores generative compositional methods
and digital instrument design specifically for
domestic cats. The generative processes place
an emphasis on 10th intervals (in just
intonation), inspired by biphonation in mice.
Topics such as waveform, pitch range,
tonality, and envelopes are considered in the
compositional and sound design approaches.
As part of this research project, we have
established a generative music player using
the open-source platform, Pure Data (Pd), that
can be downloaded freely and played via
devices capable of hosting Pd. The Pd patch
created for this project provides the
foundation for developing a functioning
website to host the generative player,
increasing
accessibility
for
users
and
availability across a wider range of playback
devices.
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