Sound-A-Bout [interactive installation]

created by Daniel Mandel, Martin Winkler, Jürgen Fattinger
for University of Art & Design Linz/Austria; Space & Designstrategies;
http://www.strategies.ufg.ac.at/
(c) 2013

INFO:
The turntable evolved to be one of the strongest symbols in the 20th century. From the US-american Rhythm&Blues in the 50ies via the jamaican Reggae phenomenon in the 60ies to the Rave-Era in the UK and Europe in the 80ies and 90ies, the turntable was the main gimmick and the center of every party. The vinyl being played defined the moves and vibes in the crowd more than anything else, as long as the table is turning, as long as there is music, there is a party. So proverbially everything revolves around the tune, the vinyl, so why should it be the other way round in real life?

The ‚Sound-A-Bout' is a usual playground carousel with the difference that there is a turntable in the central axis which is not turning, but the tone arm with the needle is turning around the vinyl, driven by noone else than the listeners themselfes. So the turntable with it's vinyl is the only thing which is actually not moving.

The vinyl is always the center, the listeners are sitting infront of each other, looking to each other. moreover, the force driving the roundabout is straight corporal, you really need to work together to have a clean sound without a jumping needle or wobbeling sound.