The Mycorrhizal Rhythm Machine
July 29 to September 20, 2021

@NAISA North, Ontario • postponed from 2020 due to COVID-19  

Turning a {Space 10} Grow Room into a Fungi and Sprout music generator.
Fine electrodes placed within roots of Endo (and some Ecto) mycorrhizal plants, receive biodata and translate this activity into notes which trigger actuators that strike, strum and rattle creating a symbiotic symphony of sound!

For example: Herbs play the string section, tomatoes + squash = percussion, flowering plants = woodwinds. As the plants thrive and grow (or die off) we hear changes in pattern.  Dawn chorus, rainy days, cold evenings= the rhythm is around us.

Due to ongoing COVID restrictions, people will interact with the Rhythm Machine through proximity sensors.

for Grow Dome installation:

Fast-growing sprouts, vegetables, herbs will be started, and grow over the duration of the installation. Visitors and/or NAISA may harvest.

Sprouts & microgreens: wheatgrass, adzuki, basil, oregano, arugula, broccoli, fenugreek, chickpea

Vegetables: squash, sweetpeas, cucumbers, tomatoes, ________

Phytagel: to show root growth with mycorrhizal fungi 

Mycelium grow bags or polycarbonate forms: Pleurotus djamor (pink oyster mushrooms), Pleurotus ostreatus (oyster mushrooms), Ganoderma lucidum

5 biodata modules sending CV out/MIDI out to various sound-making devices

Genelec speakers

Touchpads sending Visitor biodata through synths and triggering analog noise-making devices.