SI25 Broadcast 4: Protocols to Freestyle

Concept

We came together for only 1 meeting before the show were we discussed wanting to make a live show through and through. We all wanted to make something that was fun for us to make and not stick to a certain script religiously. We chose Generous Practises by Femke Snelting to 'perform' live and read aloud since it already had the right structure.

Roles

• Wyn/Claudio
• Sevgi
• Kim
• Feline

Pre-production

After learning VCV Rack in the course, we wanted to make a sound jamming. VCV Rack is an open-source software, imitating the working process of synthesis modules. We decided to use live jamming as the main protocol and work on live-jamming instruments that we can use on our computers to then connect to the radio stream.

Lukas turned on the stream prematurely so we can get into the spirit of LIVE radio. It was controversial but helpful.

Kim suggested reading one of the texts from the course out loud on the radio. We chose to perform Generous Practises by Femke Snelting with 3 hosts as the contributors. We divided the names into 3 groups and read accordingly. We stopped every chapter and turned the live music show on.

Feline decided she wants to use a program to make beats. She worked on this the whole weekend, Wyn also created a MIDI board on VCV Rack to use during the show. We also decided to use the MIDI board to type out the messages sent through Radio WORM's chatbot. At the end, VCV racks barely worked. We had to put on Sevgi's radio playlist which worked out fine.

Protocol

1.Live Jam Felines bits + KiM Soundboards

2.Live jingle Proto + Cols + For + Collective + Proformance

3.Read Text ·everyone picks a role ·someone else is typing the text

3.Radio Chat Type messages on VCV Rack (Sevgi / Kims Device)

Post-production

Studio environment proved restrictive - missing aux cable forced use of DJ booth. Needed extra laptop input capabilities. Feline prepared Sonic PI but configuration issues prevented layering live audio with effects. Microphone access failed, breaking supercollider. Used VCV rack across three versions with varied inputs - keyboard, chat messages, and read texts. Interesting moment when chat message requesting silence for VCV Rack created more typing noise. From outside perspective, technical issues weren't apparent - created nice soft focus. New elements emerged: live camera through Jitsi, fixed protocols. Future improvements noted: share Jitsi link, implement voting function, publish raw stream. Question of chat persistence - Jitsi chat ephemeral versus Radio WORM style permanent record.

Reflection: need additional microphone for typing sounds, crucial aux cable backup. Text presence evolved from simple reading to something more complex but perhaps incomplete by end. Multiple interpretations possible. Live performance aspects worked well, reminiscent of Truffaut's 451 credits. Like Peter and Wolf CD where each character has distinct instrument - brought life to text through active recreation of written conversation. Text provided protocol for presence without extensive practice, making live performance less intimidating. Protocol itself became theatrical - mimicking first sound board live created suspense. Original plan avoided silence; when typing sounds failed, music and soundtracks filled space effectively. Previous week's prototyping with VCV rack proved valuable foundation.

Claudio as a VJ and message reader

Finally, we played tunes! here is a link

Kim in front of Micophone