Animusic

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article or section may contain original research or unattributed claims. Please help Wikipedia by adding references. See the talk page for details.

Animusic is an American company specializing in the 3D visualization of MIDI-based music. Founded by Wayne Lytle, it is incorporated in New York and has offices in Texas and California. The initial name of the company was Visual Music, changed to Animusic in 1995.

The company is known for its Animusic compilations of computer-generated animations, based on MIDI events processed to simultaneously drive the music and on-screen action, leading to and corresponding to every sound. Many of the instruments appear to be robotic or play themselves using curious methods to produce and visualize the original compositions. The animations typically feature dramatically-lit rooms or landscapes.

The music of Animusic is principally pop-rock based, consisting of straightforward sequences of triggered samples and digital patches mostly played "dry"; i.e., with few effects. According to the director's comments on DVD 2(see below), most instrument sounds are generated with software synthesizers on a music workstation. Many sounds resemble stock patches available on digital keyboards, subjected to some manipulation, e.g. pitch / playback speed, to enhance their timbre.

Contents 1 Compilations 2 Publicity 3 Software used 4 Animations 4.1 Animusic: A Computer Animation Video Album 4.1.1 Animusic audio CD bonus tracks 4.2 Animusic 2: A New Computer Animation Video Album 4.2.1 Animusic 2 audio CD bonus tracks 5 Trivia 6 See also 7 External links

[edit] Compilations

As of 2006, two video compilations have been released:

• Animusic: A Computer Animation Video Album
• Animusic 2: A New Computer Animation Video Album

Animusic was re-released in 2004 in a special edition DVD. Animusic 2 was released in 2005. The Animusic website has announced that the company is making Animusic 3, but no release date has been given.

[edit] Publicity

Animusic has been promoted at SIGGRAPH since 1990, and has been promoted on Public Broadcasting Service and other television networks such as Tech TV's "Eye Drops".

Animusic has won various computer animation awards.

[edit] Software used

According to the company's FAQ, animation is created procedurally with their own proprietary MIDImotion software, Discreet 3D Studio Max was used for modeling, lighting, cameras, and rendering. Maps were painted with Corel Painter, Deep Paint 3D, and Photoshop. Unlike many other music animations, the music drives the animation. Other animations animate figures or characters to the music, while the animations here are created first, then will follow and play what the music tells them to play. Such things called 'solo cams' in the Animusic DVD shows how each instrument actually plays through a piece of music from the beginning to end.

No truth to the rumor that "Pipe Dreams was created at the University of Iowa from farm machinery parts as mentioned in an e-mail that apparently is one of the hot internet rumors today.

[edit] Animations

• Various animations for SIGGRAPH
• Bells & Whistles (computer animation) (1990)
• Beyond the Walls (known as Concerto in 3D if watched in stereograph) (1995) produced for VRex
• Kansas - Device-Voice-Drum DVD (2002)

[edit] Animusic: A Computer Animation Video Album

Track listing:

1. Future Retro
   • Instruments:
     • Triple Guitar - a combination of a
       • 4-stringed laser guided electric guitar,
       • 3-stringed electric guitar,
       • 2-stringed bass guitar and a Pan Flute
     • Percussion instrument including the drum set, metallophone and gong
     • Chorus beams
     • Four Synth lasers
2. Stick Figures
   • Instruments:
     • Hammered Bass Guitar (Also known as "Mr. Stick", in reference to the Chapman Stick)
     • Acoustic guitar
     • Percussion instrument including a drum kit, triangle, slapstick, Gong and Metallophone
     • Double bass
     • Violins
     • Lead red laser
     • Backup violet laser
     • Pan Flute
     • Trumpets
3. Aqua Harp
   • Instruments:
     • Harp
     • Flute
     • Cello
     • Viola
     • Free-hanging chimes under the harp
4. Drum Machine
   • Instruments:
     • Various percussion instruments including a drum kit, a cowbell, timpani, wood blocks, a vibraslap, toms, bells, and gongs
5. Pipe Dream
   • Instruments:
     • Harpsichord/Bongo double instrument
     • Banjo/Bongo double instrument
     • Percussion instrument including a xylophone, vibraphone and tubular bells
6. Acoustic Curves
   • Instruments:
     • Acoustic guitar (strummed)
     • Harpsichord (hammered)
     • Bass Guitar (strummed and hammered)
     • Percussion instrument including a metallophone and tubular bells
7. Harmonic Voltage
   • Instruments:
     • Red and pink synth lasers
     • Green electric guitar laser
     • Yellow pulse dischargers
     • Synthesizer Bass
     • Bass Guitar
     • Background synth strings (emitted from plasma wisp)
     • Percussion instrument including drum set

[edit] Animusic audio CD bonus tracks

There were also 3 other music pieces only available on the Animusic audio CD.

1. Seventh Alloy (Click here to hear a sample)
2. A Slight Delay (Click here to hear a sample)
3. The Harvester (Click here to hear a sample)

Since they were never animated, it is difficult to determine the shapes of the instruments, although they strongly resemble many seen in the two Animusic albums.

[edit] Animusic 2: A New Computer Animation Video Album

Track listing:

1. Starship Groove
   • Instruments:
     • Lead and bass synths
     • Plucked synth
     • Percussion instrument including standard drum kit components, and various other percussion
2. Pogo Sticks
   • Instruments:
     • Hammered bass guitar
     • Two treble guitars
     • Drum kit
     • Xylophone
     • Metallophone
3. Resonant Chamber
   • Instruments:
     • Autoharp
     • Classical guitar
     • Muted Guitar
     • Two-string Double bass
     • Ukulele
     • Lute
4. Cathedral Pictures (based on selections from Pictures at an Exhibition by Modest Mussorgsky)
   • Instruments:
     • Pipe Organ
     • Electric Bass
     • Percussion instrument including gongs
     • Horns
     • Pan flute
     • Clarinet
     • Synth laser
     • Large xylophone
     • Hammered harpsichord
5. Pipe Dream 2
   • Instruments:
     • Harpsichord/Bongo double instrument
     • Banjo/Bongo double instrument
     • Percussion instrument including a xylophone, vibraphone and tubular bells
6. Fiber Bundles
   • Instruments:
     • Percussion instrument
     • Bass Guitar
     • Echo synth pulses
     • Background Synth
     • Chorus Synth
     • Synth Pads
7. Gyro Drums
   • Instruments:
     • Various percussion instruments
8. Heavy Light
   • Instruments:
     • Percussion instrument including a gong
     • Bass Guitar
     • Pink Synth Pulse Beams
     • Blue Synth Pulse Beams
     • Blue Synth Lasers
     • Yellow Synth Lasers
     • Red Synth Lasers
     • Chorus Lights
     • Green Synth Pads

[edit] Animusic 2 audio CD bonus tracks

The bonus audio tracks on this CD consist of reduced versions of Heavy Light and Fiber Bundles:

1. Heavy Light - Drum/Bass Submix (Click here to hear a sample)
2. Fiber Bundles - Drum/Bass Submix (Click here to hear a sample)
3. Fiber Bundles - Synth/Ambient Submix (Click here to hear a sample)

[edit] Trivia

• Animusic's 'Pipe Dream' has been released as a real-time demo for ATI's Radeon 9700 series graphics cards.[1]

[edit] See also

• Gantz Graf, an earlier, more experimental example of MIDI-synchronized computer animation

[edit] External links

• Animusic official website
• 'Pipe Dream' real-time demo