Method
SoundSeeker is a Flash 9 (action-script 3) web module.
SoundSeeker loads 3 basic forms of media: texts (poems/prose in xml files), sound (mp3s/microphone) and video (mp4s).
As the mp3 plays (or the microphone is active), the volume of the music/microphone is measured. If the volume exceeds a certain level, then change occurs
in either the text (it changes to the next word or phrase) or the movie
(jumps to a random/predetermined position or loads a new video-clip).
Additionally, there is a readability-timer that decides what type of
change will be allowed on the text; this controls the reading-time, if
the readability-timer is set low then words will flutter by in a rush,
if the timer is high, then static legible text is created.
Since SoundSeeker is coded all parameters are modifiable.
The type of change (font/word/video-jump), the readability-timer
duration, the font-change (or its randomization) and the level of the
volume threshold are all possible to animate in real-time so that SoundSeeker
can create different moods as the piece progresses. Many of the
parameters are mapped to a GUI which is normally hidden in order to
reduce complexity for the viewer. These parameters can be invisibly
tweened or interpolated between different values. This allows SoundSeeker to flexibly modulate its behavior in ways defined by the programmer.
The interface has gone thru numerous iterations that progressively simplify the amount of controls. To give you a sense of why the full GUI-controls are hidden
and a very simple subset are revealed, here is an early (October
30th/2008) screenshot with GUI visible. Rolling off-screen will hide
the GUI.
Clik on the image to see this early demo work. To control the cutting-speed change the volume and threshold levels.
TOP controls (left-to-right): Microphone-MP3 toggle,
MP3 choice, volume-mute, Text choice, Delimiter choice (break text into
words or phrases), Animation style(non-functional in this demo), Text
visibility toggle.
LEFT-side controls : volume threshold scrubber (move it up/down).
RIGHT-side controls : random font toggle, font selector list.
BOTTOM controls (left-to-right): video scrubber, full-screen, video volume, video choice, video visibility.