Experiment Note:
I Consent to Let Xhabarabot Voice Machines Exploit My Voice
-Rully Shabara-
The exploration of human voice in terms of singing and vocalization, -even by the greatest singers- would still has limitations. Physical design, organs, and age are factors that preset the limits of human voice exploration.
Since the end of 2022, I have been busy tinkering with ways to push and workaround these limitations.
The first stage of this experiment is to prove that the human voice actually has superior sound potential if it is not dependent or bound to its parent instrument; the body. Without the body, it does not require pauses to breathe or to think. It is also not affected by mood or physical instability that weakens over time. Therefore, first and foremost, our voice must be separated from the body by turning it into data.
In October 2022, I released the album “Impossible Rhythms,” where all of the sound sources were derived from the data of my voice. The album contains 18 rhythmic compositions that are impossible for me to perform live as a human. However, as data separated from the constraints of the body, it is capable of creating any sound with limitless possibilities.
However, during the process of creating this album, I realized that once separated from the body, the voice becomes a free entity as it can choose to inhabit a new body or redefine its existence. Understanding this concept led me to confront other significant questions; questions around identity and exploitation.
Without the body, any sound we use is essentially a form of exploitation that dilutes and merges identities because every sound, when separated from the body, is merely a reconstruction. This means that musical instruments (electronic ones) are essentially a medium of exploitation that involves the synthesis manipulation of the original source, detached from the bonds of its identity and cultural characteristics.
Is that a bad thing? Not necessarily, depends on the context. But it is important to realize that sound has an origin. Sound (collectively) is a product of cultural and linguistic formations of a community. Therefore, sound is not only a representation of the body but also a crucial cultural asset. Electronic instruments have the ability to modify and hegemonize sound, thus risking the loss of nuances and complexities that are connected to its cultural identity. This can be a serious issue when the sound represents marginalized communities that have been silenced by history or modernity.
Electronic music and instruments have the potential to render the origin of sound meaningless because they can easily be replaced and given new meanings, as demonstrated in my album “Impossible Rhythms”.
With the rapid advancement of technology and the increasing interest of each generation in sophisticated devices and sound spectrum, will human sound be unable to compete and eventually be completely replaced in the future? Who knows. Perhaps the exploration of human sound is no longer enough only through vocalization techniques and singing styles, but there is a need for new avenues of exploration that allow it to evolve; becoming a separate entity that merges with new forms, such as technology. This is where the idea to experiment by creating the Xhabarabot Voice Machine came about.
Through a series of YouTube tutorials, I started learning about the basics of programming. This became my foundation for building the initial prototype of the Xhabarabot Voice Machine. All the sounds exploited here are raw data from my own voice. It is separated from its body. The machine or instrument that will become the new body of that sound should also be equally autonomous. The machine or instrument that will house the sound must be diverse to accommodate the characteristics of each sound being used. As an antithesis to the issue of exploitation, electronic machines should be built to adapt to sound, not the other way around. The active and conscious merging of sound identities is done by the original body with a medium that does not come from external design.
So far, I have built at least 10 prototypes of the Xhabarabot Voice Machine with various functions and styles, some of which are already available for public testing.
One of my favorites is Ambiex; which can easily and intuitively generate ambient music compositions.
Another one is Delax; which can produce sound compositions using only one-second audio samples and two delay functions.
There are also simpler ones like Sexuencer; a basic rhythm generator that can randomize or reverse its sequence.
These machines are all designed to be easy to play with by anyone, not just musicians or those familiar with electronic music production. Some of the machines even have interfaces that are as simple as children’s games, like Beatballs; which can create beat rhythms by sliding balls on the canvas screen.
Some machines are also designed to open up the possibility for broader applications. Hyperjazz, for example, not only generates sound by simply moving the mouse, but it can also be used as a visual projection simultaneously. It is very easy to use and to enjoy.
Then there are machines like Paintful or Bubblepen, which have great potential if further developed. These machines can be used by illustrators or visual artists to sketch and generate sound simultaneously. In particular, through some early tests, Paintful has been proven to be very popular among children over 5 years old. This machine also has potential for psychological therapy applications because based on some initial tests, all users claimed to feel more relaxed in their minds while drawing with Paintful.
Of course, all of these are still in the early prototype stage. I still need the help of more reliable programmers and more money to continue developing these machines to reach the next stage.
The next stage, of course, is to explore all the possibilities that will arise after my voice in these machines is exploited by the public. We will undoubtedly be faced with issues such as copyright, data security, and digital identity theft.
However, from an artistic standpoint, the opportunities to develop these machines for applications beyond sound will be very wide. This is truly exciting for me personally.
Furthermore, there is one big topic that I have been exploring continuously even before creating these machines. It is a topic that will take a long time to answer through various experiments. This topic is also the reason why these machines are named ‘Xhabarabot’.
But perhaps we should discuss it another time, in future projects.