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Undergraduate
Study 
Research
CEPA
Instruments
Lewis Kay Thatcher
Self-made instruments exploriting movement and gesture
This was a project looking into the development and creation of square-wave oscillator instruments using only analogue circuitry. Each instrument utilises the performer's movement and gesture to manipulate sound.
Four instruments are presented here: Nightrider, Handmine, The Glove and Scale-elextric.
Nightrider
Using two oscillators, one a higher pitch than the other, the player is able to use one square-wave to modulate the other. It has two forms of manipulator for each oscillator: pitch sliders and light-dependent resistors (LDRs), with a switch selecting between the two. It also has break switches, individual on/off switches and a folume control. There is an output jack at the back and a switch to select between the jack and the in-built speaker.
The Handmine
This instrument utilises six oscillators for its very unique sound. Around the circumference are six potentiometers (knobs), each controlling a separate oscillator. Each oscillator is different, having different pitches and pitch ranges. There is also an illuminating light emitting diode (LED) inside the instrument which cycles through colours, also altering the output sound. There is a volume control on the top and an output jack.
The Glove
For this instrument, the player has full control over the manipulation of the ouputted sound. It has four oscillators, each at a different pitch, with the index finger being the highest and little finger being the lowest. These are controlled by an LDR, located at the fintertips of the glove, then sent back to the handheld controller. With this controller, the other hand is able to control each oscillator: being able to cut the signal through both on/off switches and break switches (loacated at each corresponding finger). There is also an inbuilt tilt switch in the control. When the control is tipped or shaken, the signal is cut, until it is horizontal again. There is a switch to bypass the tilt switch as well as a volume control. The output comes out of a jack at the botto of the control.
Scale-elextric
This is a 20 oscillator instrument, controlled, ideally, by 3 performers. The lights on the modified scalextric cars control the LDRs around the track. These are situated in four sections, each corresponding to the switches on the control box which are colour-coded. At the control box the player is able to turn on or off each ndividual sensor, or groups of sensors. Each of the four sections is then sent out of individual jacks into a mixing desk. Two players control the cars and another performer controls the box, mixer and effects.
