Digital Sankirna
Ajay Kapur, Eric A. Singer · 2007
"Sankirna" is a Hindi word meaning hybrid, in reference to raga music. This piece is a hybrid of acoustic and computer-based Indian classical music performed by a human sitar player and a custom built robotic Indian drummer, MahaDeviBot. Sensors on the Electronic Sitar hyperinstrument gather gesture data on human performance, aiding to control rhythm parameters of MahaDeviBot. Robotic design is in conjunction with Eric Singer, Director of League of Electronic Music Urban Robots (LEMUR), and the famous sound sculptor Trimpin, from Seattle Washington., which pays homage to fluid turbulence in river valleys.