omega

K I T E




Contributors
Suzanne Kite
James Vortex Hurwitz- Technical Director
Jenica Anderson- Producer
Devin Ronneberg- Sound Director
Becca Green- Choreographer/Dancer
Lyle Henning- Stage Design
Eben Zboch- Animator
Joel Reaves- Film Director
Alexandria Rema- Dancer/Choreographer
Lewis Godowski- Programming for Kinect
Hannah Athena Lawton- Costume Designer
Eric Singleton- Programming for Gyroscopes
David Howe- Live performance
Kelsey Lanceta - Dance performance
Jackie Urlik- Harp
Marilu Donovan- Harp
Matthew Allen- Vibraphone
Margie Pratt- Photography/Video
Alex Zarth Photography/Video
Mario Luna- Sound
Hil Jaeger- Sound















Project Synopsis
Omega is an hour long exploration of that which cannot be accessed, and
therefore cannot be sorted in our perception.

The human mind insists on categorizing, ling, and othering in order to make
sense of reality. This piece seeks to identify perceptual boundaries through the
use of di"erent methods of counting, utilizing physical, visual, and auditory
phenomenon. The moment the brain forgets that counting has been occurring,
the moment where perception breaks from conscious categorization, is the
door to the inaccessible. By exposing these limits in perception, every realm of
categorization can be exposed, especially that which involves human
interactions.

My piece is an hour long set with 8 self-contained pieces that interact with each
other.

1. While wearing an iPhone that is networked with Max for Live & Ableton Live, I will
use the gyrOSC application and Max patch developed by Eric Singleton to control
sound and video just by placing rocks in continuous circles on the oor. As I reach 80
rocks, the 80 pitch frequencies will reach stability and create the phenomenon of
hearing white noise, a perceptual phenomenon where one feels they can hear every
pitch possible at once, at an equal volume. Thus, the brain tips over into innity.

2. The second piece will begin with single impulses of sound, and slowly expand into
tones and textures. Each stage of sonic development will be animated and projected
onto the scrim mounted in the space. This form of counting will take the audience
through a sonic/visual tour of 1 dimensional space, all the way to theoretical 6D space,
through the use of theoretical shapes. Surround sound will be use to create the
sonication of these dimensions.

3. Videos of hands counting will be projected and count the audience through the
rising tones, hinting at the tritone paradox, a phenomenon where the brain cannot
distinguish between higher and lower tones. The Shepherds Scale, an auditory
phenomenon that creates an endlessly rising sound, will emerge, so the brain is
tricked into thinking the sound never reaches any point, but continuously rises into
innity. This will be controlled with a midi controller which will send OSC messages to
Ableton, and the visual program Resolume, at the same time. These phenomenon will
be layered and re-organized with real instruments live, tying into the layering of the
video simultaneously.

4. The fourth piece is an attempt to recreate the theory of Speed Up proposed by
philosopher and mathematician Rudy Rucker in Infinity and the Mind. Animation will
coincide with the auditory phenomenon, where evenly spaced impulses will be sped
up until the rate of impulses turns into a pitch. These pitches will exist and mix at
di"erent levels of acceleration, creating rhythmic content, and in turn be held out at
di"erent intervals, creating harmonic content.

5. The fth section exposes how constructs of the mind reach beyond counting, such
as the limits of body, self, voice, and identity. Taking a riddle called Woman from
Infinity and the Mind and shape it into a piece dealing with violence against the self and
violence against women, the ultimate Other in many societies. I will use voice and
noise to sonically induce the chaos of existing within constructs. I will be working with
MFA lm maker Soa Canales and lm maker Joel Reeves to create video clips that will
be triggered live with OSC.

6. The sixth piece uses a mathematical model of an innity system, a Lindenmeyer
system, to show how innite systems are used to grow plants in nature. This system
will be used to digitally grow a plant. Sonically, its growth will be followed by live and
recorded instruments. Finally, multiple plants will bloom into life, diverging from the
system.

7. The nal piece will deal with the string paradox: Every string which has one end
also has another end; a paradox because of the possibility of innite systems. Using a
more traditional electronic music style, the set will conclude by presenting a
performance with three dancers where the projections will follow and trace the
dancers bodies. They will use a 100 foot veil as a prop, nding no beginning, no end,
and never being able to reach the other side, or each other.