Between Air and Electricity Between Air and Electricity Microphones and Loudspeakers as Musical Instruments Cathy van Eck Bloomsbury Academic An imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Inc NEW YORK • LONDON • OXFORD • NEW DELHI • SYDNEY Bloomsbury Academic An imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Inc 1385 Broadway 50 Bedford Square New York London NY 10018 WC1B 3DP USA UK www.bloomsbury.com BLOOMSBURY and the Diana logo are trademarks of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc First published 2017 © Cathy van Eck, 2017 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publishers. No responsibility for loss caused to any individual or organization acting on or refraining from action as a result of the material in this publication can be accepted by Bloomsbury or the author. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress ISBN: HB: 978-1-5013-2760-5 ePub: 978-1-5013-2761-2 ePDF: 978-1-5013-2762-9 Cover design: Louise Dugdale Cover image © Cathy van Eck Typeset by Integra Software Services Pvt. Ltd. Contents List of Figures viii List of Schemes xi Acknowledgements xv Introduction 1 1 Beyond the Curtain: The ‘True Nature’ of Microphones and Loudspeakers 9 An empty stage: Listening according to the Konzertreform 9 A concert at home: The invention of sound reproduction technologies 11 Storage of air pressure waves 12 Transportation of air pressure waves 13 Amplification of air pressure waves 13 Between air and electricity 15 A standard, almost perfect amplifier and loudspeaker 16 Microphones and loudspeakers: The musical instruments of our age? 18 The ‘true nature’ of microphones and loudspeakers 19 2 Reproducing – Supporting – Generating – Interacting: Four Approaches towards Microphones and Loudspeakers 25 Made for music: Concepts on musical instruments 25 Violins, mixing desks and spoons 28 Piano lessons or a phonograph: How sound reproduction technologies entered the living room 29 The instrumental phonograph and the reproducing radio 32 Semantic acts of sound creation 34 Hearing voices through the noise: Completely satisfactory recordings in 1902 35 Electricity, bodies and diaphragms 36 Reproducing: One sound system for all music 38 Supporting: The same sound but louder 38 vi Contents Transparent technology 41 The record as a copy of the concert and the concert as a copy of the record 43 Generating: Music without musical instruments 45 Interacting: Resonance and resistance 49 3 The Sound of Microphones and Loudspeakers 55 Acoustic feedback: An electromechanical oscillator 55 The tuning fork: An early sine wave generator 59 Transforming sound into a researchable object 61 Hermann von Helmholtz: Tuning fork experiments 62 Hermann von Helmholtz: Tuning forks reproduce human vowels 64 The tympanic principle and the tuning fork principle 66 Alexander Bell: Metal rods reproduce sound 68 Alexander Bell: Metal plates reproduce sound 70 Richard Eisenmann: An electric piano with tuning forks 72 George Dieckmann: A piano string oscillator 74 Bechstein-Siemens-Nernst-piano: Piano, radio and gramophone through the same loudspeaker 76 4 Movement, Material and Space: Interacting with Microphones and Loudspeakers 83 Acoustic feedback: From mistake to music 83 Movement 84 Quintet by Hugh Davies: Changing the distance between microphone and loudspeaker 84 Pendulum Music by Steve Reich: Introducing silence 88 Bird and Person Dyning by Alvin Lucier: Listening as a performative act 91 Green Piece by Anne Wellmer: Interacting with another sound source 93 Mikrophonie I by Karlheinz Stockhausen: Amplification only 94 Speaker Swinging by Gordon Monahan and Three Short Stories and an Apotheosis by Annea Lockwood: Moving loudspeakers 99 Material 104 Coffee making by Valerian Maly and0’00” by John Cage: Everyday actions amplified 105 Inside Piano by Andrea Neumann: Musical instruments and contact microphones 108 Contents vii Apple Box Double by Pauline Oliveros and Shozyg by Hugh Davies: New instruments through amplification 110 Nodalings by Nicolas Collins: Acoustic feedback through objects 113 Rainforest by David Tudor: Every loudspeaker a different voice 115 Aptium by Lynn Pook, and Merzbow: The audible becomes feelable 119 Space 122 Music for piano with amplified sonorous vessels by Alvin Lucier: Interaction between microphones and small spaces 122 Loudspeakers in brass instruments and focused loudspeakers: Interaction between loudspeakers and small spaces 124 . .sofferte onde serene…and Guai ai gelidi mostri by Luigi Nono: Interaction between loudspeakers and performance space 127 Acousmonium by François Bayle: Loudspeaker orchestras 131 Performances by Eliane Radigue and Der tönende See by Kirsten Reese: Sound unified in space and dispersed in space 134 Audible EcoSystemics by Agostino Di Scipio: Closing the acoustic feedback loop again 138 5 Composing with Microphones and Loudspeakers 145 Beyond musical instruments: A hybrid of approaches 145 The Edison tone tests: No difference 147 Nothing Is Real (Strawberry Fields Forever) by Alvin Lucier: A piano in a teapot 149 Windy Gong by Ute Wassermann: Singing through the gong 153 Snare drum pieces by Wolfgang Heiniger: Invisible beating 155 tubes by Paul Craenen: Musicians, dancers and technicians 159 Open Air Bach by Lara Stanic: Speeding up a sonata 163 Resistances and resonances of microphones and loudspeakers 166 The future of microphones and loudspeakers: Between air and electricity 167 Appendix Biographies 171 Bibliography 177 Index 189 List of Figures 1.1 Konzertreform: to hide the choir and the orchestra panels were installed in the concert hall ‘Stadthalle’ in 1903 Heidelberg, Germany (Schuster 1903/04). 9 1.2 Thomas Edison’s megaphone (Anonymous 1878). 14 2.1 A moving coil loudspeaker as developed by Chester W. Rice and Edward W. Kellogg (Rice and Kellogg 1925, 470). 26 2.2 An advertisement for musical instruments in the living room: grand pianos, player pianos and phonographs (Anonymous 1919). 31 3.1 Graphical method of observing the mode of vibration of a tuning fork (Lockyer 1878, 167). The tuning fork seems to be too large to be brought in vibration by the small bow. This picture is probably meant for explaining the principle and not a realistic picture of how the experiment was executed. 62 3.2 Apparat zur künstlichen Zusammensetzung der Vocalklänge as developed by Herrmann von Helmholtz (Pisko 1865, 22). 65 3.3 Harp apparatus (Bell 1878, 19). Bell intended with this design, that as soon as the rods H are brought into vibration by a sound, the electromagnet E outputs an intermittent current which will be transmitted to the other electromagnet E’. The rods H’ should then be brought into vibration by electromagnet E’. 69 3.4 Design of two identical devices for transforming sound into electricity that use single metal plates instead of many rods (Bell 1878, 22). 71 3.5 In early sketches of a telephone conversation mouth- and earpiece are nearly identical. Drawing by Alexander Graham Bell, 1876. Alexander Graham Bell Collection, Alexander Graham Bell family papers, 1834–1974, Library of Congress. 71 3.6 Eisenmann use a similar tuning fork interrupter for his electric piano as Helmholtz did in his Apparat (Eisenmann 1887, 3). 73 3.7 The piano string serves as its own current interrupter. When the string vibrates the connection between string and contact-spring M is opened and closed (Dieckmann 1887, 3). 75 List of Figures ix 3.8 The core elements of the Neo Bechstein: an amplifierVerstärker ( ), a volume slider (Lautstärkeregler), a connection for a gramophone (Schallplattenanschluß), a radio (Empfänger) and electro-magnets (Mikrophone) (Winckel 1931, 840). 77 4.1 The Talea Ensemble performing Stockhausen’sMikrophonie I. Photo by Michael Yu. 96 4.2 Loudspeaker set-up for Speaker Swinging: besides the loudspeaker also a light and a device for controlling the light is attached to the rope. © Gordon Monahan. Photo by Beat Müller. 101 4.3 The inside of theSound Ball by Annea Lockwood. © Annea Lockwood. Photo by Manny Albam. 102 4.4 Some microphones placed on the Inside Piano of Andrea Neumann. From left to right: one Schertler microphone is placed on the sounding board, one taped on the strings. The Dean Marclay guitar pickup is placed on the strings. © Andrea Neumann. Photo by Andrea Neumann. 109 4.5 The outside and inside of theShozyg by Hugh Davies. © Hugh Davies. Photo by Science Museum/Science & Society Picture Library. 111 4.6 Sabrina Schroeder attaches a tactile transducer to a drum. The clear fishing lines are used for keeping the transducer in place during performance. © Sabrina Schroeder. Photo by Phillip Schulze. 117 4.7 Fourteen small tactile transducers are attached to the body of the audience member during Aptium by Lynn Pook. © Lynn Pook. Photo by Lynn Pook. 120 4.8 A tactile transducer is placed on the soundboard of the grand piano for a performance of ..... sofferte onde serene… as interpreted by Alvise Vidolin. Photo by Cathy van Eck. 129 4.9 For Der tönende See by Kirsten Reese small loudspeakers and cassette players are placed into bowls. © Kirsten Reese. Photo by Ingrid Schreiber. 137 4.10 The bowls with loudspeakers are dispersed in different directions in the water. © Kirsten Reese. Photo by Ingrid Schreiber. 137 5.1 An advertisement reporting on the success of an Edison tone test as performed the day before (Anonymous 1921, 4). 148 5.2 A cork with felt on top is attached to the dust cap of this small loudspeaker used by Ute Wassermann to facilitate contact with the gong. © Ute Wassermann. Photo by Ute Wassermann. 154 x List of Figures 5.3 The loudspeakers are hidden inside the snare drums, only the cables coming out of the drums are visible in 5 Türme in flacher Landschaft (2007) for seven self-playing snare drums by Wolfgang Heiniger. © Wolfgang Heiniger.