At last, build a circuit that you can dance to.
A rhythmic-focused DIY music workshop where you’ll create your own electronic percussion gizmos. We’ll design our own analog drum circuits (everything from kicks to snares to hand claps), build a computer that can generate patterns on the fly, create an 808 (on a budget), return to a child-like state when we convert pots and pans into DIY drum triggers, and so, so, so much more.
We designed this curriculum with creative people in mind, regardless of your engineering experience. We’ll start from absolute scratch and every week, add a new component to our sparkly homemade drum machine. Most folks who have taken our workshops start out with zero electronics knowledge, and are typically surprised at how much they learn over the first few weeks.
Although not a pre-requisite, this workshop is an excellent companion to “DIY Synthesizers for the Electronically Unacquainted.” It’s a great way to add some booms and baps to your knowledge of bleeps and bloops.
Nine weeks, 2 hours/week
100% virtual
International participants welcome
$600, all materials + US shipping included.
A musico-physico-cultural masterclass about building a drum machine from scratch.
We’ll learn how to translate cumbia rhythms into schematics, misuse logic gates to sound like cymbals, and synthesize drum patterns that seven-legged creatures can dance to.
This is a workshop by and for creative people of all strokes—whether you’re a clarinetist, a painter, a writer, a dancer, or one of those chainsaw woodcarvers. Our goal is to help you figure out how to integrate the joys of drum machines into whatever the heck it is you do. No technical expertise is necessary—we’ll start from scratch and work our way up in complexity. For two hours a week, we’ll meet in a small group online, and learn together. We’ll not only be building genuinely impressive instruments to use in your own creative projects, but discovering the amazing cultural context of drum machines, and by extension, the human fascination with rhythm. By the time we come to the final project, you’ll know how to make a dozen (depending on how you count) interchangeable drum modules that can be recombined into any number of unique electro-sympho-magnetic creations.
Each class is a small (~10-15 people) group of interesting musicians, artists, engineers, and performers—you’ll actually get to know one another, exchange creative ideas, and motivate others to try new stuff out. A week or so before the workshop, you’ll receive a decently-sized box in the mail, filled with everything you need to create your own one-of-a-kind musical inventions.
WHAT YOU’LL LEARN:
How to think like a creative engineer. You'll leave the class with a strong understanding of how electrons can be used to make all sorts of sounds, how to use digital logic to program patterns, how to take these skills in virtually any direction you could possibly imagine.
How electronic rhythm actually works. We'll learn how analog drum machines work under the hood, and the interface between classical rhythmic theory and electronic computing.
How electronic rhythm changed the world. We'll dive into the evergreen sociopolitical history of beatmaking circuitry, and why it’s still a culturally charged act.
More stuff that you didn't know you needed to know. As with all our workshops, we’ll be taking side trips into all sorts of related fields--linguistics, installation art, biomechanics, economics, history, and cultural performance studies about gender and race. Electronics is a lot more than men in funny lab coats (though you can wear your lab coat to class if you want, we won't judge).
WHAT YOU’LL GET:
A big, cool-looking kit shipped to your door with a bunch of stuff: literally hundreds of nifty electronic components, two breadboards, speakers, a bunch of fancy integrated circuits, and some fun looking documentation that will make you look very smart when your friends come and visit.
Certified not boring™, beginner-friendly, live instruction delivered in small group sessions.
A supportive community of interesting folks you’ll actually get to meet and chat with (you’ll also have access to the Dogbotic Labs network to continue exchanging ideas with your peers/ask questions even after the workshop has ended).
Endless possibilities and inspiration on how to use your newfound knowledge in your own artistic practice.
Access to a bunch of other resources: additional video tutorials, circuit diagrams, relevant essays and schematics, and a bunch of other stuff.
Something genuinely memorable to do for two-and-a-half months.
WHO YOU ARE:
A person who makes creative stuff (or would like to start making creative stuff). Our students come from all backgrounds, but most have some sort of pre-existing practice—be they artists, composers, writers, animators, etc. Some of our students haven’t made art in over a decade and that’s a-ok. In fact, if you used to do art but for some reason stopped, we’d be honored to help get you back up and running.
Someone who's curious to learn how stuff works. While there's no math involved, we can’t teach you how a synth works without at least an ounce of physics. Plus, learning how your electronics work "under the hood" is the fastest way to become a better musical inventor.
A tinkerer who likes the occasional challenge. While you'll have personal, direct access to instructors for troubleshooting, please know that electronics isn't always a hobby for instant gratification. Sometimes you'll need to spend a few minutes poking at your creation before it works correctly. We'll provide shoulders to sob on and helping hands at every opportunity--our goal is to get you to make stuff that really, truly works.
DIY MUSIC GIFT CERTIFICATE
For your beginner circuit bender, electronic composer, and audio anarchist.
Redeemable for any of the following sessions being offered:
Physical gift certificates will be mailed to the recipient and include a redemption code, secular stocking stuffers, and a handwritten personal message (optional). Physical gift certificates must be purchased at least 5 business days before preferred delivery date to arrive on time.
Digital gift certificates will be sent to your giftee of choice and include an optional personal note. Digital gift certificates can be purchased at any time!
Similar Workshops:
DIY Synths for the Electronically Unacquainted
Our flagship workshop—learn to build a synth from scratch that really, truly works. All parts and shipping included, no experience necessary.
A music composition workshop about media-bending techniques: build your own radio, phonograph, digital sampler, and much more. Learn how electronic communication works while making art. There’s truly no workshop like this one.
Rekindle your love of tape, and circuitbend a walkman so it makes all sorts of nifty sounds the manufacturer never intended.
ABOUT THE FOLKS WHO MAKE THIS:
Creative Team
Sean Russell Hallowell (technical director) is a composer and video artist from San Francisco. His time-based art synthesizes experimental techniques developed from hand-built circuitry with a cosmic perspective on the origins of music in number and periodicity. Concert works and audiovisual installations of his have been showcased at festivals and galleries across the US as well as in Mexico, Chile, South Korea, Japan, the UK, Belgium, Croatia, and Iceland. More here.
Kirk Pearson (curriculum developer, instructor) is a composer and multimedia artist based in Berkeley, CA. They are the founder and director of Dogbotic, a Bay-Area based audio laboratory where creative-driven inquiry meets inquiry-driven creativity. A graduate of Oberlin College and Conservatory, Kirk has written music, built installations, and designed experiences for the New Museum, the American Museum of Natural History, Museum für Kommunikation Bern, and for hundreds of films, stage productions, and new media projects. In 2017, Kirk was named a recipient of the Thomas Watson Fellowship, through which they spent a year traveling the world composing works for experimental instruments. They cut their sandwiches diagonally.
Maisy Byerly (design) is an illustrator who likes to envy people’s dogs and stare at people on the subway. She graduated from Oberlin College, where she studied politics, East Asian studies, and studio art. After graduation, she was an Oberlin Shansi fellow at Shanxi Agricultural University in Taigu, Shanxi province, China, where she taught English, drew cartoons, played badminton, and researched local governance for two years. She returned to the US to get a master’s in social science from the University of Chicago. She has illustrated three personal books and collaborated with authors on several others. If you are interested in engaging her for a project, she can be contacted at maisy.byerly@gmail.com
Operations Team
Jasmine Bailey (Director of Operations) is a self-described collection of creativity who loves to bring the forests of her imagination to life. Inspired by nature, films, and the abilities of different mediums, she strives to make genuine connections with those who interact with her and her creations. Jasmine creates art using alcohol markers, gouache, ink, colored pencils, LEDs, sound waves, digital logic, and interactive webpages, sometimes all at the same time! She is based in Connecticut and has a degree in Audio and Music Production from Western Connecticut State University. More here.
