VRITUAL AV

STEVE GIBSON

VRitual AV uses the Leap Motion 3D controller, as well as a multi-touch iPad interface (in TouchOSC) to enable small-area gestural control of sound and light. It deliberately uses as few technological resources as possible in a limited spatial area, while retaining the complexity of interaction required for an expert (as opposed to a general) interactive performance. The interface is a model for portability, and in addition serves as a solution for older body-based performers (including myself), who may physically struggle with larger-area interaction.

VRitual AV enables the performer to move his or her hands and draw to perform and mix music, lights and visuals in real-time with relative precision. The ultimate in tactile audio-visual interfaces!

LINKS Project website: https://www.telebody.ws/VRitual-AV/VRitual-AV.html Vimeo showcase: https://vimeo.com/showcase/9966326 Soundcloud Playlist: https://soundcloud.com/steve-gibson-101/sets/vritual-av

PERFORMANCE HISTORY May 23-29, 2025 - ISEA 2025 Seoul, Korea March 7, 2025 - Particle+Wave, Calgary April 5, 2024, Sender, Zurich. October 14, 2023, 404 Festival, National Arts Center, Mexico City August 30, 2023, The Glass Room, Edinburgh Napier, Audio-Mostly 2023 (winner of Best Music Performance) November 6, 2022, Iklectik London, Live Visuals Book Launch Afterparty (Premiere) August 24, 2022, May 9, 2023, September 6, 2023, Northern Dance Newcastle (Live Shoot Performances)

STILLS FROM ISEA2025, Seoul Photo Credit Sarah Kim, Yong-Shin LEE. Courtesy of art center nabi

STILLS FROM SHOOTS AT NORTHERN DANCE. All Images shot by Liam Hardy and edited by Steve Gibson

A short video excerpt showing how gestures can be used to make complex interactions with audio, video and light.

A video in which all gestural interactions captioned in real-time

STILLS FROM SENDER, ZURICH. Images shot by Stefan Arisona and Marsellus Wallace, and edited by Steve Gibson

STILLS FROM 404 FESTIVAL 2023, NATIONAL ARTS CENTER, MEXICO CITY. Images shot by Jean-Philippe Côté, and Nancy Durán, and edited by Steve Gibson

STILLS FROM AUDIO MOSTLY 23, EDINBURGH (winner of Best Music Performance). All Images shot by Lucy Middleton and edited by Steve Gibson

STILLS FROM PREMIERE AT IKLECTIC LONDON. All Images shot by Jonathan Crabb

TESTIMONIALS I’ve been battling with thinking of doing real time A\V in the dome for a long time and the prep for your performance really let us test our limits… You showed true professionalism throughout, I’ll be watching for more work from you! Jeff Read, Lead Curator of Planetarium Dome at TELUS Spark Science Centre, Calgary, hosts of the performances for Particle+WAVE2025. Steve’s performance was both engaging and inspiring, resonating strongly with our audience. We would be delighted to host Steve again in the future should the opportunity arise. Lowell Smidteboom, Creative Experience Manager, Fixed Attractions, TELUS Spark Science Centre, Calgary Few people have managed to sustain and accompany music in the unconquerable air as Steve Gibson does. He has enabled sound to travel in a manner that is as expressive as it is memorable. As a worthy and committed witness to the hinge that unites the last two centuries, his tireless work positions him as one of the great artists representing twenty-first-century art. In a world that seeks to indoctrinate our gestures, Gibson reclaims and insists upon the most human aspect that binds us to any technology: the determination to create with freedom, passion, and will. Gina Valenti, Director, 404 Festival Thank you once again for your valuable contribution to Audio Mostly 2023. Your VRitual AV performance—awarded the Best Music Performance Award—was truly inspiring and had a significant impact on the Audio Mostly community. Historically, the conference has featured fewer audiovisual performances of such high artistic and technical quality. Your work demonstrated a remarkable level of curation across musical and visual dimensions, brought together through an outstanding interaction with the medium via gesture-based control. The concert was attended by 68 participants representing 27 countries worldwide. Among the nine performances presented, yours distinguished itself through its artistic depth, audience engagement, and compelling demonstration of high‑resolution real‑time audio and video processing. The precision and expressivity with which you controlled the audiovisual feedback, achieved through immediate yet highly nuanced gestures, were particularly noteworthy. Balandino DiDonata, Director, Audio Mostly 2023 A combination of Michel Waisvisz’s The Hands and Electronic Body Music. Louis-Philippe Demers, Robotic Artist and attendee at ISEA2025 performance in Seoul

VENN DIAGRAM

LEAP MOTION CONTROLS EXAMPLE

TOUCHOSC CONTROLS