Re: error correction/Nicolas Collins

["Jesse Kudler" <jkudler@mail.wesleyan.edu>]

Thanks a lot for the tip.  I'm about to check it out.

-Jesse

----- Original Message -----
From: Keenan Lawler <klaw@konstant.com>
To: <Loopers-Delight@annihilist.com>
Sent: Thursday, April 15, 1999 2:29 AM
Subject: Re: error correction/Nicolas Collins


>
> Hello Jeese & all loopers-i agree with yr comments on Nic Collns-hes 
>quite
> a brillant composer/musician who has done so much innovative work esp his
> inverse guitar stuff- have you ever seen the kalvos & damien new music
> bazaar site?
>
> check this  for a live interview & great music from Collins (as well as a
> wellspring of great music from many diverse composers )
> & some wacky banter in between .Its a huge archive of radio shows from 5
> years ago to the present-youll need real audio
>
>
> scroll down the page & click  the programm to see the playlist---
>
>
> http://www.goddard.edu/wgdr/kalvos/shows.html
>                  Oedipus Nix
>                                                      July 6
>
> Nicolas Collins, 2
>    58
>                  Czar Nicolas, the Tunguska Fireball
>                                                      June 29
>                                                                     42
>
> Nicolas Collins, 1
>
>
>
> enjoy!
>
>     K
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> At 06:30 PM 4/14/99 -0400, you wrote:
> >I've been hearing and reading quite a bit about Nicolas Collins lately
(who
> >coincidentally studied at the school I now attend, though that has
nothing
> >to do with how I heard about him), but I haven't been able to find his
stuff
> >anywhere.  However, Kim's remarks reminded me about an interview I read
with
> >him where he talks about his modifications to CD's and players.  The
below
> >is excerpted from a longer interview at
> >http://www.art-bag.net/contd/issue2/collins.htm#f1
> >
> >By the way, if anyone has more info on Collins or is familiar with his
work
> >and where to find it, do share, off-list or on.
> >
> >***
> >I started to do the CD-skipping-thing in '88 or '89, and used it a lot 
>in
> >live performances, since I tend to do a lot of pieces that are based on
> >processing found sound material. In a nutshell, everything I do has to 
>do
> >with sticking something into a machine and watching it come out 
>different
at
> >the other end. I used to work a lot with cassette tapes, I put different
> >material in the left and the right channels and sort of distributed 
>stuff
> >randomly over tape so you would never know exactly what you would get
when.
> >And I started using CD players because I could remotely control them 
>very
> >easily, to get access to different parts. I did some modifications in 
>the
> >players just to see if I could manipulate the CD the way you can an LP 
>--
> >scratching. I came up with a few very simple tricks whereby you can
scratch
> >and cue and this kind of stuff.
> >
> >MC: So you do the tricks on the CDs or inside the CD player?
> >
> >NC: In the CD player. In terms of history, there were a number of
artists --
> >most particularly Yasunao Tone, a Japanese artists working in New York,
who
> >did pieces where they prepared the CDs themselves. They discovered that
if
> >you put crayon marks or cellotape on the CD, you can get it to do all
sorts
> >of jingling stuff. But I went inside the CD player and looked, because I
> >suspected -- and I was right -- that the laser was always reading
> >information off the disc, even when you're on pause or moving from track
one
>
> >to track 30. It's always reading information, but the control computer
> >"censors" the output, decides for us what is music (i.e., the clean
> >playback) and what is "noise" (scratching, skipping). So I found that
> >control signal, marked "mute" and I simply flipped that pin off the chip
so
> >that it could no longer mute anything. And that opened the door to the
inner
> >world of the CD: you could hear anything that the CD-player was doing at
any
> >time. Later I got in deeper and started to turning in and off the motor
and
> >sled, slow it down, make things go backwards, typical screw-up things.
> >***
> >
> >-Jesse
> >
> >----- Original Message -----
> >From: Kim Flint <kflint@annihilist.com>
> >To: <Loopers-Delight@annihilist.com>
> >Sent: Wednesday, April 14, 1999 2:42 AM
> >Subject: Re: error correction
> >
> >
> >>
> >> I played around with this idea once. I think I even mentioned it on 
>the
> >> list a long time ago, since it's an interesting way to get some crazy
> >> loops. With a little experimentation, you can get some really nutty
things
> >> to come out of a cd player. My favorite from those days was a bad 
>heavy
> >> metal band* cd that I painted lines on with white-out. Then I scraped
some
> >> of the white-out off so it was fairly spotty. I think it was an
iterative
> >> thing, really. I painted a bunch on, played it, didn't like it, scrape
> >some
> >> off, play again, etc, until I got a good result. For me, the cd player
> >> would randomly skip around the disc, getting stuck in tight loops over
> >bits
> >> of audio for a while and then skipping randomly again. Sometimes it
would
> >> actually play a stretch for a little while before skipping off again.
> >> Ofentimes I'd have to press buttons on the front to break it out of a
loop
> >> if it stuck too long. The result sounded like some wild industrial
music.
> >> Intense, percussive loops would form over little stretches of 
>bad-metal
> >> sound, and suddenly switch to a different bad-metal loop. Great fun.
> >>
> >> A guy I knew then who did this weird college radio show suggested
> >> microwaving the cds. I guess it makes lots of sparks before the 
>plastic
> >> around the disk shatters, leaving spider webs of lines all over the cd
> >> surface. Probably that wreaks havoc on the poor cd laser. Never tried
that
> >> one, as I would surely starve to death if I blew up the microwave.
> >>
> >> I don't imagine it's easy to disable error correction in the player.
> >> Different manufacturers probably use different error correction
> >algorithms,
> >> so I would guess the results differ from machine to machine. However,
> >error
> >> correction is only meant to handle bits of dust and small scratches, 
>so
> >any
> >> serious damage to the cd should completely overwhelm it. I don't know
how
> >> the guy would get pitch and timbre changes, but I'm sure you could get
all
> >> sorts of crazy stuff if you experimented with different cds and
> >> cd-mutilation techniques.
> >>
> >> I say, just grab some crappy cd's and go for it!  If you destroy your
cd
> >> player or any other home appliances in the process, please don't blame
> >> me....
> >>
> >> *Meliah Rage, remember them? no? They were much better after I 
>finished
> >> with them. ;-)
> >>
> >> ______________________________________________________________________
> >> Kim Flint                   | Looper's Delight
> >> kflint@annihilist.com       | http://www.annihilist.com/loop/loop.html
> >> http://www.annihilist.com/  | Loopers-Delight-request@annihilist.com
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >
>
>