“music of the spheres” is a web application that realizes on the internet the concept of Collective Instrument, a project I have been working on for a long time.

Collective Instrument traces back to an idea by Walter Smetak: rather than one person handling one instrument, many people handle a single instrument together. It realizes collectivity in music at the level of the instrument’s interface.

“music of the spheres” generates music automatically according to a physical model. It continues to generate music even when no one is listening. Yet anyone can access this “instrument” and change the music by dragging the moving “planets.” When two or more people are listening, changes made by someone on the other side of the network are immediately reflected for everyone. Left alone, the movements gradually become smaller and slower, but all previous interactions remain present and their traces never disappear. The music heard here retains the memory of everyone who has ever played this “instrument,” and continues forever, even when there is no one left to listen.

— Boethius (Claude)