Conductor: the sound of the New York subway

Conductor, by Alexander Chen, is a webpage that sonifies the new York subway schedule. The webpage draws the New York subway map onscreen in order of the schedule and when a lines crosses another one,  it triggers a note, akin to pulling a string. Conductor uses a combination of HTML, Javascript and Flash.

AERO – Flight Time Music Generator

AERO, by Gregory Reeves, is a MacOS application, made with MaxMSP, that uses flight departure and arrival data from four airports in the USA. AERO takes these otherwise dry (and sometimes stress-inducing) data and turns it into delicate generative music. 

FMS Symphony

FMS Symphony is a quirky sonification of the  US treasury balance since the 2008 financial crisis. It was released in 2012 and I asked the creators, Thomas Levine and Brian Abelson, part of CSV Soundsystem, a few questions to know more about it. 

A database of sonification works

As I discover new works, I try to get as much information as possible to write a blog post about it. Unfortunately, sometimes, I cannot get all information. I could leave those works alone and fade away in the endless ocean of data, or I can create a database of works. At least, you will be able to listen to the works yourself and maybe you can get some inspiration.

Stadsmuziek/ Citymusic: a sonification of buildings by Akko Goldenbeld

Citymusic is an installation by Dutch artist and designer Akko Goldenbeld. It sonifies the heights of buildings in Eindhoven and Amsterdam using a piano and a city map on a roll that plays the piano keys, a bit like a pianola. Akko was kind enough to answer a few questions to explain how the installation works.