Sound of music... from a machine

STARS in their Eyes could be the title for a unique concert next week when musical machines are unleashed to an audience eager to hear improvisation in the widest possible meaning of the word.

One of those due to perform at the Blackrock Castle Observatory in Cork is Han-earl Park’s robot-like io 0.0.1 beta++, a machine made from plumbing parts, kitchenware, missile switches, speakers and a microphone stand.

The tutor at University College Cork’s school of music has been developing the machine, which he prefers to call an automaton rather than a robot, since he received an Arts Council grant in 2007. The music it plays is generated from software Han-earl has developed and he likens its sound to something between a saxophone and an oboe.