Halocline - Cymatics Music Video
- 1080p in the video library (same as this player ↑)
- 4k on YouTube
Today I am so happy to present the first track from the new album Allostasis. The track is called Halocline and is actually the final track of the album, in other words we start at the end.
What does the title mean?
A Halocline is a phenomenon in water where the concentration of salt changes so rapidly that the two different types of water do not blend, but act like two different waters on top of each other. A sea on top of a sea if you like. The lower, more salty water is below and looks more foggy, and the less salty water looks clearer and is on top. The halocline is the point where they meet, the border. It is quite interesting to watch videos of divers swimming across this border, because on video it looks like they swim out of the water and start flying in the air. Well worth a search on YouTube.
About the video
So to make a music video / visualizer about a track named after water I of course wanted to make something with water. So I asked drovn.ninja who makes cymatics, if we could collaborate. Cymatics is a technique where you place a material, typically salt or in this case water, on a surface that is on top of a speaker of some sort. Then as the speaker vibrates, the patterns of the sound will be visualized in the material. A bit technical to explain in text, but quite intuitive, and dare I say magical, when you see it in person. Here are some pictures of the rig.
Programming visual patterns with sound
So the first thing we did, is what drovn.ninja usually does, we simply played the music through the speaker to see what patterns would emerge. But turns out there was simply not enough bass, and also notes were changing too fast for there to really form any patterns. It looked cool and all, but felt a bit too busy for the vibe of the track.
So instead I made a small Max patch that put out very simple sinewaves at precise frequencies, programmed some low frequency waves and sent over, and got a video recording back. Then, after a few tries I figured out what frequencies would form the different patterns and then programmed an arrangement that I felt visually matched the sound of the music. I think we did 10 takes in total before landing on the final one, which is the one you see in the video.
I am really happy with how I managed to create some slow transitions of morphing from one pattern to another at points, and I liked how he programmed the lights to show the complexity in the waves.
It was super fun! And I am so happy I got the permission to get a (remote) run on his cymatics rig. Thanks a lot!
Pre-order the album
Subscribe to the newsletter here or follow the RSS feed here.