Sonification Tool | Sierra MacTavish

SIERRA MACTAVISH / EXPERIMENTAL PHOTOGRAPHY & SOUNDSonification Tool

Listen to what exists beneath

PHOTO / VIDEO / SIGNAL / SOUND

01 / SOURCE / SCAN

Horizontal scan · still image

00:00Image-led · calculating

Loading sample photograph.

Photo layersUp to four images

01 / Base photographEdit in source view

Loading sample photograph

Image composite

Enabled layers are composited into one photographic score. Opacity changes which pixels trigger notes.

Scan pathSource coordinates

Traversal

Scan band 42%

Each point on the scan reads a line of pixels across the image.

Project files / recoveryPrivate · saved to your computer

Save the images, pixel edits, field recording, scan path and controls in one file. Browser recovery is available when local storage permits.

Output spectrogramLive output · 70 Hz–8 kHz

20pitch lanes

-note attacks / scan

-active scan slices

-note-map change

Edit source pixelsNo note markers on the image.

Brush

Brush size 34 px

01 / Signal mapping

Changes are applied to the note map during playback.

Pixel analysis

Video motion response 45%Frame-to-frame changes increase note attacks and level in video mode.

Number of notes

Pitch tuning

Colour

Threshold gates active rows. Pattern sensitivity sets retrigger rate. Note count sets pitch lanes, not a fixed number of note attacks.

Scan timing

Photo scan

Scan pace 45%Slower pace holds longer on detailed or active image areas. Each image takes a different amount of time.

Repeat continuously until Stop

End decay 10 sec

The scan length follows the image. Repeating has no time limit; live recording continues until you stop it.

02 / Oscillator

Source mapping controls pitch and note events. Oscillator settings control timbre.

Synth voiceEach synth changes timbre; the image still decides pitch and note events.

03 / Field recording

Play recognizable field recordings or fragment them into grains. Image analysis shapes recording level and tone over time.

No recording loaded. WAV, MP3, or another browser-supported audio file.

Audio source

Recording playback

Auto-level quiet recordings On

Natural mode keeps the recording intact at its original pitch. The image smoothly changes its level, brightness and stereo position. Recording continuity sets how much remains audible in dark areas (0% = fully image-gated). Flowing mode overlaps longer excerpts; Granular mode makes shorter fragments. Recording share sets the oscillator balance. Audio is included in live capture and photo WAV export.

04 / Effects

Live signal processing. Recordings and WAV exports include the enabled effects.

05 / Spatial delay network

Multi-tap feedback delays for smeared echoes and long decays. Off by default. Select a configuration or raise Wet mix to activate this browser-native delay network. It does not run the Valhalla plugin.

Starting configuration

Mix is effect-only level relative to dry output. Warp spreads delay times; density increases crossfeed. Feedback determines decay. EQ affects wet output only.

06 / Audio export

Choose WAV, MP3 or M4A beside the Export button above. WAV quality is configured here.

WAV quality

WAV works offline. MP3 and M4A load encoders when needed and require an internet connection. M4A also requires browser support for AAC encoding. Long compressed exports may use substantial memory.

07 / Page artwork

Optional interface background image.

Artwork visibility 50%

Background blur 0 px