royal college of art

Description

This kit by Royal College of Art graduate Neil Merry allows musicians to control sound and lighting effects at their gigs by slinging the microphone around or waggling their instruments about. Presented at the Royal College of Art graduate show in London this week, the portable Plug + Play kit includes sensors that clip onto instruments or microphone stands, controlling sound and lighting according to the performer's movements and gestures. One senses the proximity of the performer to the microphone, for example, while another is activated by twisting the microphone stand. "It's about having control over things you wouldn't normally have control of as a performer," says Merry, who thinks the kit could bring more engaging performances to electronic music in particular: "With electronic music you can be stuck behind a laptop so you lose that interaction, whereas this lets you control the electronic sounds in a more physical way." He explains that while shows at a big venue might come with a sound desk and a lighting display, "this is a kit for intimate gigs on a small stage - it's something one person can take with them." All the components clip together on the back of the lamp for easy transportation. Right now the sensors feed into a control box that relays changes to the speakers and a light, but Merry hopes to make the system wireless so it would be easier to set up. Neil Merry is graduating from Platform 17 of the Design Products course at the Royal College of Art, where the show opens to the public from 20–30 June.