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We like this activity because it let people experiment on many different levels. (1) midi-cricket-food allowed visitors to try something quickly that sounded pretty interesting. If they wanted to know more about how it worked there were two other options. (2) crickets with digital displays were helpful in that they allowed visitors to see what the crickets were detecting as they poked and prodded different foods. (3) buzzers and motors was basic, and the the most open and rough element. Once visitors wired a motor or buzzer they could see if the current would flow through different foods. In all areas we used a a variety of foods, some worked very well while others may not have worked at all. This seemed to capture a few visitors attention for quite a while. Nobody stayed in the studio longer than the bassoonist. There were not a lot of young kids at this event, the majority of the people who spent a lot of time with us were adults. Something about the food made the midi and cricket very approachable. Many people asked "what's going on" then seemed compelled to stay and find out more. It would have been better to have had more midi-boards, with the cricket set-up. Next time we try this, even if we don't have more boards, we'll set them closer to each other. People really wanted to play music together (each picking a different instrument - at times this worked across the room, but it was difficult to hear). I could imagine an installation - set up as a buffet line amoung little cafe tables holding a midi-board and cricket/candle center pieces. Folks could then sit down and create an ensemble. The midi board powered by a 9v batterie worked well, but used many batteries. The other one with the AC adapter worked better, both were connected to amplified speakers. The midi boards tended to revert back to a default instrument after a short period of time. We're not sure what caused this, but we want to try it again to see if it was their continuous use over a long period of time (overheating), or if it was caused by our changing the command line and inserting new instruments too often...... We really liked the fact that our activity was only a small part of a larger event. It seemed to fit nicely within that larger context. Several visitors commented on how fun it was to "play" - there was a playful feel to the entire night, but I think they were referring to being able to mess with the stuff themselves. We didn't have a sign outside the studio, although we've had them for other events. This caused fewer people to wander in, and the experience would have been less successful if the room was full. |
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Our attempt at statistical
thinking... 300 visitors |
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If you have
any questions or ideas to add, Thanks - Karen/Mike |
