beatfix studios

All images created by Chris Korda using the geometric visualizer Whorld.

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Hardware Requirements

• A computer that runs Windows and has a Bluetooth adapter
• A Nintendo Wiimote controller with Nunchuk

Software Requirements

• MIDI Yoke (download / web site)
• Whorld 1.7.06 (download / web site)
• GlovePIE 0.29 (download / web site)
• The WiiWhorld script (”WiiWhorld.PIE”) (download)

Setting Up

• Install MIDI Yoke.  Set “MIDI Yoke NT: 1″ as your default MIDI playback device in Windows.  (instructions here)
• Unpack the .zip files for the Whorld software, GlovePIE, and the WiiWhorld script.
• Install Whorld.  Run Whorld.  From the menu bar in Whorld, select View -> Options -> MIDI.  From the pulldown list, select “MIDI Yoke NT: 1″.
• Open the GlovePIE folder.  Run GlovePIE.exe (no installation required).  From the menu bar in GlovePIE, open “WiiWhorld.PIE” (File -> Open -> )  Do not click the “Run” button yet.

Pairing the Wiimote

The exact process will vary, depending on your Bluetooth stack.  Here are the key points you need to know:

• The Wiimote must be in discoverable mode throughout the pairing process.  Press and hold the “1″ and “2″ buttons on the Wiimote simultaneously, and continue to hold them until the pairing process is complete.
• If you are pairing your Wiimote for the first time, you may need to add it as a new Bluetooth device.
• The Wiimote is recognized by Bluetooth as a HID (human interface device).
• The Wiimote does not require a passkey.  If you are prompted to enter a passkey, decline or skip it.

If you would like more detailed instructions:
Bluesoleil Bluetooth stack
Built-in Windows Bluetooth stack

And Away We Go!

Once you have successfully paired your Wiimote:

• Go back into GlovePIE.  Click the “Run” button.  You should see numbers moving in the debug box (immediately to the right of the “Run” button).  If you don’t see anything, then your Wiimote is not properly paired, and you need to go through the pairing process again.
• Connect the Nunchuk to the Wiimote, if you haven’t already.
• Go into Whorld.  Shake your Wii.  If everything is working, you should be able to tell right away.
• To put Whorld in fullscreen mode, press F11 on your keyboard.  Have fun!

Notes:

For convenience, I like to associate the .PIE file extension to automatically open with GlovePIE, and then create a desktop shortcut to the WiiWhorld.PIE script.  Do whatever works best for you.

Occasionally the Nunchuk will lose its connection with the Wiimote, and stop responding.  This can usually be fixed by simply unplugging the Nunchuk from the Wiimote, and then plugging it back in.

Excerpt from a live DJ set by Jeff Mission. GREEN is a weekly radio broadcast on WZBC 90.3 FM, hosted by Shwilly B and Jeff Mission, broadcasting throughout the greater Boston area every Monday night from 10pm-2am (EST). The video here was recorded using the Third Eye, a custom-built VJ camera worn on the center of the forehead, giving an accurate first-person perspective as Jeff Mission spins live on the air. Audio was captured live from the sound board. The result is a unique look inside the DJ process.

A live video feedback performance by VJ Jeff Mission. The smooth, colorful waves in this piece were generated by chaining together two pieces of equipment – an Edirol V4 video mixer, and a JVC JX-C7 Video Corrector – in a continuous loop, then making incremental adjustments to the settings on the JX-C7. The result is a digital organism, composed of pure feedback, that can be manipulated at will. The technique used in this piece is one of the core components of my live performances.

This piece was performed live as part of a visual jam session held at Beatfix Studios, Boston, MA. A combination of organic motion and digital technology, ‘Timbale’ is a new twist on a classic lightshow technique. By using an artists’ lightbox and overhead camera, hand movements are isolated and captured. The image is sent in real time to a video mixer and blended into a live feedback loop, where it creates echoes that ripple through the frame.

VJ Phi (Jen Rosselli) and VJ Mission perform live visuals at the Phoenix Landing in Cambridge, MA, USA. The technique shown in this piece involves a lightbox, video camera, video mixer, and mesh fabric. Images of the mesh fabric being moved back and forth by hand over the lightbox are captured by the camera. The image is then sent to the video mixer, where a mirror effect is applied. The background is lumakeyed out and replaced with a second image, of live video feedback.

Party-goers create live video patterns with the WiiWhorld visual synth. The project, created by Chris Korda and Jeff Mission, combines the Nintendo Wiimote controller and the open-source geometric visualizer Whorld. Camera by Lydia Eccles. Music: “Rollah” by Rainbow Bright. Edited by Jeff Mission.

Late last year, while searching about for repair parts for an old Rutt-Etra V-synth, a team of visual archaeologists led by John “Oscillocam_TV” Koczera made a startling find. Deep in the bowels of Harvard University, within a basement office space, inside a rusty desk drawer, hidden beneath a pile of Heathkit catalogs, a time capsule from the 70’s was discovered. Scrawled across the exterior was a single word: “Groovy”. The capsule was cracked open to reveal 3 items – a lava lamp, a stick of incense, and a battered BetaMax cassette labeled “WiiWhorld Explained”.

After a painstaking digital restoration process, the contents of this cassette are being revealed to the public for the first time…