jazz telemotions-A networked intermedia concert
CAL IT2 UCSD BLACK BOX THEATRE, local site
• Scenic DESIGN
Lighting design-Omar Ramos
TELEMATIC RESEARCH BETWEEN CALIT2 UCSD AND UCI
MUSICIANS–MARK DRESSER (UCSD), MICHAEL DESSEN (UCI), MYRA MELFORD (UC BERKELEY)
VIDEO-JOHN CRAWFORD, UCI
Transmedia producer-todd margolis
supported by grants from ucira, crca, and Csro/cal it2 strategic research opportunities program
http://www.ucira.ucsb.edu/experimental-telematic-performance-research/
Giving a concert in two places at once is possible, provided you have the right instruments. Musicians Michael Dessen, Mark Dresser and Myra Melford performed for two audiences at the same time in spite of the fact that the listeners as well as the jazz trio itself were divided between two stages 150 kilometres apart. The trio played and responded to their fans just as if they were all in the same concert venue. The two unique music performances that took place in California on 16 and 17 April were made possible by the UltraGrid technology, in development by a team of researchers of CESNET, the association of Czech universities and the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic.
In professional terms, this was a very demanding operation: achieving the effect of a normal concert without all the musicians being present on the same stage is not an easy task, because hearing is much more sensitive to delay and all sorts of failures than eyesight. Yet the experiment was a success, pleasing the musicians, the audiences and the network specialists.
Whereas Michael Dessen was playing the trombone on stage at the University of California in Irvine, his colleagues—double bass player Mark Dresser and pianist Myra Melford—were playing in the music hall of the University of California in San Diego 150 kilometres away. Thanks to the high-speed computer networks and very advanced video transmission equipment, the image of the performing trombone player could be projected onto the stage between his two colleagues, and vice versa: his two jazz partners were projected beside Michael Dessen playing live in Irvine. The unusual cultural event was part of TeleMotions: A Networked Intermedia Concert, made possible by the University of California Center for Research in Computing and the Arts (CRCA).
The revolutionary concerts were another demonstration of just how useful high-speed networks are not only for scientific and research projects, but also for events in real people's lives, such as cultural events. The requirements for the quality and latency of the image material in the described case seriously exceeded the capacities of commonly available video conferencing and streaming systems, so the organizers decided to use the UltraGrid technology, developed by CESNET. Moreover, the CESNET team implemented the parallel transmission of an uncompressed HD image along two gigabit lines specifically for the purposes of the "cloned concerts", compensating for the unavailability of a fast enough (10 GE) connection in the concert venues.
UltraGrid is a technology enabling low-latency transmission of uncompressed high-definition video. The technology has been under development by CESNET since 2005 as part of its pilot multimedia applications for broadband networks. It enables the Linux and MacOS X commodity platforms to transfer uncompressed, or very low compressed video in HD and 2K definition, and even 4K in the experimental versions. Uncompressed video, or a very low compression ratio, make it possible to achieve high image quality and minimum delay (less than 100 ms) even without special hardware solutions.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVVW93o1huA
2011
"In recent years, UC researchers have been leading new developments into telepresence performance, not only by implementing newly emerging network applications that enable high-quality audio and video connections among remote locations, but also by creating new artistic works that explore the potentials of this new medium. Extending upon that research, this concert featured new music composed and performed by Mark Dresser (bass), Myra Melford (piano) and Michael Dessen (trombone), performed in a visual environment created by Victoria Petrovich (scenic design) and John Crawford (telematic video).
With live audiences at both sites, Dresser and Melford performed in San Diego at the Calit2 Theatre within Petrovich's immersive stage design, while Dessen performed in the Calit2 Auditorium at UC Irvine where Crawford integrated live video into both performance spaces. The performances took advantage of a dedicated, high-speed optical network between the Irvine and San Diego buildings of the California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology, a leading research unit based at the University of California.
Telemotions is the result of a two year collaboration between artists, researchers and graduate students who specialize in video, audio, design and computer networking..."
"In recent years, UC researchers have been leading new developments into telepresence performance, not only by implementing newly emerging network applications that enable high-quality audio and video connections among remote locations, but also by creating new artistic works that explore the potentials of this new medium. Extending upon that research, this concert featured new music composed and performed by Mark Dresser (bass), Myra Melford (piano) and Michael Dessen (trombone), performed in a visual environment created by Victoria Petrovich (scenic design) and John Crawford (telematic video).
With live audiences at both sites, Dresser and Melford performed in San Diego at the Calit2 Theatre within Petrovich's immersive stage design, while Dessen performed in the Calit2 Auditorium at UC Irvine where Crawford integrated live video into both performance spaces. The performances took advantage of a dedicated, high-speed optical network between the Irvine and San Diego buildings of the California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology, a leading research unit based at the University of California.
Telemotions is the result of a two year collaboration between artists, researchers and graduate students who specialize in video, audio, design and computer networking..."