About the idea
The dream of reaching for the stars is as old as mankind itself. The mathematics of planetary orbits, the perfection of natural geometrical forms fascinates andinspires scientists and artists alike. Even music principles as tonality or phase displacement are based upon computational ideas and find correspondency in the Orbiter’s structure.
The music is played on a scale of concentric circles, visible in some of the scenes, with higher tones on the larger, basses on the smaller circles. The bigger you let a star grow before you pull back your hand to insert it into orbit, the louder it plays. Like the stars orbit on the large ceiling screen above the player, the surround sound orbits in the room on up to 10 high-tone-channels, supported by a bass box and a solid bourne sound speaker underneath the player´s couch.
Each version of the Orbiter features various scenes with different graphics, sounds and behaviour. Some create an illusionary nightsky firmament, playing more melodic or ambient sounds. Others experiment with the possibilities of graphical abstraction and rough synths, allowing you to even play drum´n basslike sounds.
A long-time exposure of the firmament
Telescope photograph of a nebula, source: NASA Image of the Day
