Instruments by Ranjit Bhatnagar

Ranjit Bhatnagar, Singing Room for a Shy Person

From May 2-9, 2013 Brooklyn based, interactive sound art and installation artist, Ranjit Bhatnagar will be sharing The Singing Room with Clocktower visitors.

The Singing Room is a place for anyone to sing freely and in public. The room has been built with the "Shy Person" in mind, allowing him or her to sing without being exposed to the assumed scrutiny of others. Visitors are invited to sing in a small sound proof room. As they sing, the musical instruments outside of the room, abstractly interpret their singing. Each syllable pronounced by the singer is projected as musical and/or acoustic sounds. The installation is deliberately loud, further ensuring that that Shy Person cannot be heard.

This project was initially commissioned by the Métamatic Research Initiative in 2011 and was completed in March 2013. It will be installed at Basel's Tinguely Museum in the fall of 2013.

Bhatnagar's Vexbot is also on view. The work was prompted by Erik Satie's Vexations, in which the French composer wrote; "in order to play the theme 840 times in succession it would be advisable to prepare oneself beforehand and in the deepest silence by serious immobilities." In response to Satie, Vexbot was created "to perform hazardous tasks which might otherwise endanger valuable pianists."

Ranjit Bhatnagar is a sound sculptor who works with technology, language, and found materials to create interactive installations and musical instruments. His works have been exhibited across the United States and in Europe and have appeared in performances as far from New York as Shanghai. As part of an ongoing annual project, he creates a new homemade musical instrument each day of the month of February--the Instrument-a-day project is now in its sixth year. He'll be working with the art collectives Flux Factory and Rabid Hands to build a large-scale installation at the Palais de Tokyo Museum in Paris this summer.

Reception: Ranjit Bhatnagar, Singing Room

Reception for the artist and his mechanical orchestra that tracks a person's voice from inside an isolation booth and transmutes it into a work for chamber ensemble. Free and open to the public. 108 Leonard Street, 13th Floor. Bring a photo ID. Confirmed RSVP required to events@artonair.org. No admittance after 7pm. Plus, his wonderful Vexbot plays Satie! The night also marks one of the last chances to see Dark Paradise and Papo Colo. The studio room installation of Nomi Ruiz will also be on view during the event. The Singing Room is a place for anyone to sing freely, and in public. The room has been built with the "Shy Person" in mind, allowing them to sing without being exposed to the assumed scrutiny of others. Visitors are invited to sing in a small sound proof room. As they sing, the musical instruments outside of the room, abstractly interpret their singing. Each syllable pronounced by the singer is projected as musical and/or acoustic sounds. The installation is deliberately loud, further ensuring that that Shy Person cannot be heard. This project was initially commissioned by the Métamatic Research Initiative in 2011 and was completed in March 2013. It will be installed at Basel's Tinguely Museum in the fall of 2013.