Dream Squawk is part of a larger performance that happened at Exit Art called Dream Shadows, a love story between an introspective scientist and a magical bird-woman from his dreams. It is a hand-crafted bird mask that houses controls for a software-based vocal effects processor and sampler. Dream Squawk is implemented using a wireless lavalier microphone, custom wireless circuit design built into the beak of the mask, a separate module worn on the back of the head, and custom digital signal processing software written in Pd. The circuit in the beak contains switches and potentiometers, which talk wirelessly to the software and allow the user to record/mute two live vocal samples to create loops, and tweak echo effects and speed effects independently. The performer has precise controls over each of these effects, expanding their vocal performance into ephemeral dream-like sound.