prehysteries of new media: >> Jens Brand, "Global Player", 2004

<< preface

this blog is nina wenhart's collection of resources on the various histories of new media art. it consists mainly of non or very little edited material i found flaneuring on the net, sometimes with my own annotations and comments, sometimes it's also textparts i retyped from books that are out of print.

it is also meant to be an additional resource of information and recommended reading for my students of the prehystories of new media class that i teach at the school of the art institute of chicago in fall 2008.

the focus is on the time period from the beginning of the 20th century up to today.

2008-07-17

>> Jens Brand, "Global Player", 2004

"the earth is a disc"

"Jens Brand’s GP4 (Global Player) functions basically like a regular

Compact Disc or record player. However, sound is not reproduced by a
stylus from the grooves of a record player that are picked up. Instead
the earth is scanned virtually via satellite travelling routes.
Topographical data are interpreted by the G-Player and reproduced in an
exact acoustic equivalent as audio files.

>From the outset Brand conceived the GP4 as a commercial product and,
therefore, staged his installations as a trade fair stall stand.
Mobility and availability are the buzzwords of the new product placement
strategies, thus the G-Player, the G-Pod and G-Turns have been developed
in reference to the newest phenomenon that has seen at the global music
market.

The newest version, G-Turns, makes the GP4 available in an online
version from which users can ‘download and play’ the earth on their
home computers. The earth as sound experience is available on the market
in three price brackets, depending on the distance of the satellite
routes between two co-ordinates that can be chosen by the user: five
minutes are available for only 4.95 euros. For fifteen minutes the user
has to pay only 14.95 euros. This further development of the project as
an online-store is presented to the public for the first time at the
exhibition SOUND//BYTES and is, therefore, premièring worldwide as
Oldenburg Branch: www.g-turns.com."
(http://osdir.com/ml/culture.internet.rohrpost/2007-03/msg00009.html)


the project's website:
http://www.g-turns.com/

video of the G-Pod:
http://www.directions.jp/airartlog/flv/AAL013/013-02.html


video of the G-Player:
http://www.directions.jp/airartlog/flv/AAL003/003-02.html