Prime Composition
2 months ago
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7. Prime Composition
2 months ago
A short piece based on the decomposition of successive numbers into their prime factors. Each prime is represented as a harmonic partial. For a number N, only those prime harmonics which are factors of N are played.
For example, the number 66 has prime factors 2, 3 and 11, which are the 1st, 2nd and 5th primes. With a fundamental (base) frequency of 60hz, this would therefore trigger sine partials of 60hz, 120hz and 300hz. The fundamental frequency cycles through a triadic sequence every 64 numbers - the only compositional decision besides the underlying structure.
Factors are visually represented as logarithmically-scaled circles, with hue determined by their value. A flash is seen upon reaching a prime number (whose sonic representation is a single partial, corresponding to its single prime index).
Visual programming done in Processing (www.processing.org), communicating with SuperCollider for synthesis (supercollider.sourceforge.net). Full source code available at: erase.net/projects/prime-composition/
For example, the number 66 has prime factors 2, 3 and 11, which are the 1st, 2nd and 5th primes. With a fundamental (base) frequency of 60hz, this would therefore trigger sine partials of 60hz, 120hz and 300hz. The fundamental frequency cycles through a triadic sequence every 64 numbers - the only compositional decision besides the underlying structure.
Factors are visually represented as logarithmically-scaled circles, with hue determined by their value. A flash is seen upon reaching a prime number (whose sonic representation is a single partial, corresponding to its single prime index).
Visual programming done in Processing (www.processing.org), communicating with SuperCollider for synthesis (supercollider.sourceforge.net). Full source code available at: erase.net/projects/prime-composition/
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I do wish there was no blurring between frames, so that I could enjoy a number by itself.
interestingly (?), there is a vague limit to the system's sonic exhaustibility: given that each prime harmonic is a multiple of the fundamental frequency, it fairly quickly goes out of range of human hearing. assuming an audibility limit of 15khz, with a fundamental of 50hz, this would happen after the 300th prime (= 1987).
the blurring is less severe on the original Processing sketch and .mp4. i do like the idea of being able to view each number individually, however, and so have created a frame-by-frame browser with desktop-res images of each number:
erase.net/projects/prime-composition/frames/