rifts is an acousmatic piece in wave field synthesis (WFS) format. It was made in 2008 initially as a showcase piece for the WAVE loudspeaker, a prototype 8-channel loudspeaker developed at Sony’s Creative Centre in Tokyo by designer Yuji Morimiya. The piece was also remixed for the 192-channel WFS system at the Game of Life Foundation in Den Haag, and featured there and in the Foundation’s WFS showcase at the Sónar Festival in June 2012.
rifts uses wave field synthesis, a kind of surround sound, to make extreme spatial contrasts between layers of material. Sounds appear to approach and recede, crossing through textures that remain spatially static. In the stereo mix presented here these effects aren’t so discernible, but with WFS playback the piece creates big contrasts between distant and very close, intense sounds.
With kind support of the GB Sasakawa Foundation.
