April 06, 2008 –
Jeon selected specific drums to represent five geo-cultural regions.
The human heart beats 60-80 times per minute. The sustained repetition of the pulse – slowing and speeding synchronously with movement – results in an unrehearsed rhythmic pattern.
For electronic artist Byeong Sam Jeon, the heartbeat provides the ideal metaphor for his latest interactive project, Telematic Drum Circle.
“We may have other differences – physical, cultural, economic, political – but when it comes to the heart, everyone has a beat,” Jeon says.
Jeon wondered if a traditional drum circle could be transformed by technology to, form a collective global voice without a single spoken word, reflecting the rhythm at the center of our being.
Typically, drum circles are convened within communities. While some drum groups form around particular issues, others have no agenda except to allow the members an impromptu opportunity to come together, play their instruments and share rhythm.
Three years ago, soon after arriving from his native South Korea, Jeon stumbled upon a group of people casually gathered on a Chicago street corner, banging out an infectious beat with makeshift instruments. It was his first exposure to a drum circle.
“After three minutes I was participating, dancing actually, and clapping along in sync,” Jeon recalls. “I was fully communicating without saying hello.”
The experience was life-changing. Jeon’s own creative voice emerged from the drumming session and ideas began flowing.
Preliminary Plans
He prepared a 20-page proposal outlining the concept for an Internet-based drum circle. He envisioned a room filled with percussion instruments, each outfitted with a robotic drumstick. Users from every corner of the world would log onto a designated Web site, chose a drum and tap together across cyberspace.
But with no studio, money or equipment, Jeon needed support. In 2006, he came to UCI as an Art Computation Engineering (ACE) graduate student and found a home in CALIT2’s second floor performance technology lab.
At first, Jeon’s working prototype was crudely simple – some discarded white water buckets, broken tree branches and very basic robotic technology.
“It looked really bad in the beginning but surprisingly it worked,” Jeon grins. “I mean, when I think back on it, it really worked well.”
Encouraged by positive feedback from his ACE colleagues and professors, Jeon put together a promotional package and called upon dozens of companies.
His entrepreneurial efforts paid off.
Eight sponsors came forward, including several music and technology companies.
REMO, one of the biggest percussion manufacturers in the world, lent Jeon their products for six months. He carefully chose 16 instruments representing five geo-cultural regions, paying close attention to the pitch of each to ensure good overall sound quality.
Clippard Instrument Laboratory donated the miniature pneumatic components that utilized compressed air to make the robotic drumsticks pound when the online participants tapped their keyboards.
Several other companies supplied Jeon with various electronic components needed to complete his project.
“As far as I know, we built the world’s first telerobotic sound improvisation played by online users who live in different locations,” Jeon says.
Drum Roll, Please
The telematic drum circle debuted at CALIT2 in February. The colorful, new instruments with their electronic devices formed a large circle in the middle of the lab. Cameras pointed at the circle from various angles, providing a live stream of video broadcast through the Web site. While participants logged on from remote locations to join the ensemble, others stopped by in person to play along from one of several laptops in the lab.
The numbers were immediately impressive. Within the first 10 days, more than 700 people visited the lab. The Web site had 11,000 page views and 4,000 online participants actually played the drums. By tracking IP addresses, Jeon determined he had international participation, with at least 16 countries represented.
People from Buenos Aires were interacting with users from Seoul, London, New York and Tokyo.
It appeared language was not a barrier. Participants found creative ways to “talk” to each other, experimenting with the sound by creating patterns and making interactive connections. “Some people used it like a Morse code exchange,” Jeon says.
For Jeon, this is only the start. He plans to further refine the project by adding more instruments, robotics and archival technology so participants can preserve their experiences.
He hopes the virtual drumming will continue to facilitate deeper channels of discourse and foster a real sense of community and family.
“The heart-to-heart communication that can be expressed on these drums cuts through all the differences,” he says. “It blurs the boundaries between us.”
— Shellie Nazarenus
www.telematicdrumcircle.com
