Category: PIFlog

Since one-woman-blog-team hasn’t found the words yet to describe yesterday’s epic PIFday, here comes a photo dump (and two captions). More words tomorrow!

Traditionally, the first part of Wednesday at the PIFcamp is reserved for the hike to Krn Lake. Getting up at 6:00 is not the most popular activity, but every year, a fair number of PIFlars choose to participate – our favourite breakfast team, who open their sandwich shop on Tuesday evening for the occasion, reported 12 orders. Hikers were led by Jaka from Ekologi brez meja (Ecologists Without Borders), who is also in charge of the waste management at this year’s PIFcamp, keeping a watchful eye on (and weighing) the amount of different types of waste. Based on the data collected, he will propose guidelines for future improvements.

Your reporter was helping with preparations for the PIFconcert at the Fort Kluže on Wednesday, so she was unable to attend the hike. Luckily, PIFlars are just one step away at all times. We talked to Oriol, who enjoys going to the mountains, and he was very pleased with the trip. The group walked the not-too-difficult route from the Klement Jug mountain lodge in Lepena to the lake in just over two hours, before taking in the view of the beautiful Krn Lake, stopping for a coffee in the mountain lodge and signing the visitors’ book. The return journey took a little longer, but our mountaineers still managed to reach the base PIFcamp in time for lunch.

On the initiative of Jani Pirnat, another PIFcamp familiar, part of the organizing team decided to move one of the numerous jam sessions, which take place on the PIFterrace, to the walls of the walled courtyard of the Fort Kluže. The event, held under the title PIFconcert and Algorave: Lasers, beeping and lightning, featured no less than 14 performers. The majority of the audience was made up of PIFcamp participants, but we also noticed a few dozen external visitors. The courtyard of the Fortress is a beautiful venue, but this was not the reason why the event was a success. We should thank the wonderful performers right at the beginning of this report, for their music and visuals that transported us to different dimensions.

At 9 pm sharp, the stage was taken over by the first first-time trio of performers: multi-instrumentalists Rob Canning and Robbie Hopper were accompanied on live coded visuals in P5LIVE by Julia Múgica (aka Dr. Ju). Another premiere duo featuring Tilen Sepič and Linalab (Lina Bautista) followed with a modular synths-live coding combo. Lina used the Mercury environment for the first time in a public performance, and we must say it didn’t show. Halfway through their performance Hansi3D and Jerobeam Fenderson climbed one of the walls of the fortress and covered the interior walls with multi-colored laser nebulae.

The audience was already well warmed up when Oscilloscope Music turned their lasers in the opposite direction, facing the hill below Fort Hermann. Judging by the gasps, cheers and applause during their AV set, the audience was nevertheless caught off-guard by their dazzling show. One of the participants posted a story on her instagram profile during which we managed to overhear the following priceless comment: “What’s thaaaat?!! I just found myself in 16 dimensions at the same time!”

After the dynamic lasers duo, another PIFsupergroup took the stage, this time consisting of Manu Retamero aka ëgg and Tina Tonagel, accompanied by Sophia Bulgakova‘s digital-analogue visual delights. The last two performances were yet another treat for live coding fans: the supertrio of the Toplap Barcelona collective – Iván, Roger and Niklas – showed off their programming and performance skills and, of course, their screens. Iván codes his music in SuperCollider with the assistance of AI, Niklas performs in his own Mégra language, while Roger used Animatron, a 2D animation live coding environment he co-created with Glen Fraser, for the visuals. Laurent, who prepared his AV set in FoxDot, provided the perfect finale with exactly the right amount of rhythms, repetition and melody. Wednesday didn’t exactly provide a traditional end to the day, but a glance at the timetable announced a much more traditional Thursday – workshop on workshop on workshop. A true classic, which of course we will also report on.

please wait. PIFlog entry coming soon.

Participants woke up to a slow, rainy Tuesday. Grey clouds were hovering over PIFcamp for most of the day, but few raindrops won’t stop PIFlars, maybe just slow them down a bit. In the morning, the kimchi-making workshop, led by Maya Minder, retreated to Neža’s kitchen. We will report on the results on Saturday, when the fermented delicacy will be ready for tasting.

After lunch, Alicia Champlin and Julia Múgica invited the participants for a heart rate monitor building workshop. Their wearable device uses an EPS32 microcontroller that sends the data of the heart rate sensor over WiFi. Alicia and Julia will then sonify the data and make a sound piece for a multi-channel setup. Their initial plan was to present it in the dome, but we’re sorry to say the weather conditions don’t seem to be ideal for that.

This year’s PIFresident, Michael Candy, who enjoys making nonsensical devices, presented his drone, on which he sometimes mounts a mobile phone with videos he has taken in other locations. Because he can. Michael is also an avid robot builder, so stay tuned for more info on his PIFprojects.

Rob Canning and his daughter Meta have been preparing for Thursday’s Networked Touch workshops, which will provide participants with a choice of three levels of complexity – from an LED brooch to a musical instrument that can be played by touching wires. Apart from building various devices, some PIFparticipants were also hard at work laying bricks. Meet Martin Mušič (on the photo below Rob) who works with clay and porcelain. He already invited fellow participants to get their hands dirty and try different types of clay for modelling objects. One of his PIFprojects also includes building a DIY clay burning oven to be used by the end of the week.

The last Tuesday workshop was delivered by Rodolfo Acosta Castro, who enthused the participants with bat calls, echolocation, and bat detection devices. His own design, a bat detection device which translates the ultrasound frequencies to lower frequencies, audible to humans, really impressed the audience. Rodolfo prepared the materials for the participants, so they can build the devices themselves – apart from the receiver, he also designed a synth for reproducing bat calls. The most enthusiastic PIFlars started soldering right away, while the majority of the workshop participants just assembled the kits and made plans to start building in the following days. Of course, you’ll be the first to know when they succeed.

Monday’s jam under the canopy was taken over by the live coders, while Tuesday saw the return of the synth (and apparently feedback loops) enthusiasts. Sophia and Laurent did the visuals with a digital-analogue setup, while Manu and Tina played with synths and no input mixers. Their rich textures swayed participants into the night…

In PIFtopia, the work week doesn’t really start until Monday (not unlike other parts of the world). Participants mostly spent it planning, exploring and getting to know their surroundings. After breakfast, a group of PIFparticipants joined Ewen for a walk and the launch (or rather: lifting) of his solar balloon. Other PIFlars spent the morning getting attuned and exploring the PIFcamp’s surroundings, but after lunch (and coffee!), the grounds slowly started to resemble a real work site.

In the afternoon, a group of performers and organizers of the PIFconcert and Algorave at the Fort Kluže set off for a visit to the venue, while wild food enthusiasts went for a walk with our neighbour Neža to Lamovje, where they explored the edible plants and mushrooms growing in the area. We will report on the foraging expedition and other food-related activities in a special PIFood feature. In the meantime, the base camp hosted some workshops. At 4:20, Maggie Kane organized a PIFjournaling workshop under the canopy, and Nejc Trampuž gathered a group of curious PIFparticipants under the tent for an intro presentation on creating animations with AI.

Preparations are also well underway for the projects in the Immersive Sound Dome. Lan Wu is one of the participants who will be presenting his work in the dome, a sound piece featuring field recordings. In the afternoon, he invited the field recording enthusiasts for a test walk and preliminary recordings of the sounds around Soča river.

Monday ended with a bonfire, live coding and lasers projected onto a nearby tree by Hansi and Jerobeam (aka Oscilloscope Music). Despite copious amounts of coffee and clubbing beverages, your reporter is a bit slowed down due to low air pressure, but you can expect a more comprehensive report on the PIFprojects tomorrow.

What will you read about on this year’s PIFlog? After the introductory presentations, we can predict that you will once again enhance your knowledge about live coding, witness the return of fermentation and foraging enthusiasts and immerse yourself in the surroundings of the village of Soča with all your senses. Once again, synths, lasers and all sorts of robots will abound. The worksite is ready, let’s get to work!

Along with many of the live coders you’ve already met on this blog, this year’s participants also feature a few newcomers. Laurent Malys is attending PIFcamp for the first time this year, and this week he will continue working on his performance Body to Code, which combines dance and live coding. Ironic and impractical, his transhumanist performance showcases the creativity of algorithmic electronic music while questioning the interconnections between humans and machines.

Laurent during his PIFproject presentation. Photo: Katja Goljat

Niklas Reppel, one of the PIFcamp returnees and members of the Toplap Barcelona collective, often combines live coding with field recordings in his practice. This year, he will populate the surroundings of PIFcamp with various objects on which he is placing binaural microphones (in the shape of human ears) to explore how the world around us sounds from a non-human perspective. The project is dedicated to the memory of composer and sound artist Alvin Lucier.

Blaž Pavlica, an old PIFcamp familiar, is back with his DIY sound dome project, which he has upgraded in every way this year – in addition to a brand new lightweight structure that makes assembly easier, the immersive sound dome now includes a 16-speaker system, with a canopy floating above it to protect it from the rain. The dome soundscape will be co-created by a number of PIFlars, and we’ll make sure to report on their projects in the coming days.

Dome projects planning with Blaž, its navigator. Photo: Katja Goljat

In addition to the writers of your favourite PIFlog, reporters for Makery and other documentarists are present at PIFcamp grounds. Live coder and illustrator Roger Pibernat, who was one of the more active participants last year, will be creating a visual diary for the aforementioned portal at this year’s PIFcamp. We can’t wait to see the results!

A sneak peak into Roger’s sketchbook. Photo: Katja Goljat

We end this introductory roundup of some of the projects with one of our favourite recurring PIFprojects – for the fifth year in a row, Klemen Košir has been researching ways to feed more than 60 hungry PIFlars. So far, it looks like he’s going to succeed yet again. Tomorrow we will report on the first workshops and the progress of the remaining projects, so stay tuned!

PIFlars flocked to the Soča Valley from all directions to occupy the traditional PIFcamp venue for the ninth time in a row. After the official welcome speeches and a “no-no” (aka you don’t want to try this) list walk-through, more than 60 participants presented themselves and their PIFproject ideas. For the most reliable information on the progress of this year’s projects (and other PIFtopia activities and festivities) follow our PIFlog. We also kindly invite you to visit (and re-visit) the newly established blog on everything PIF and food related, PIFood, and the greatest Instagram meme account in the whole of upper Soča Valley, @pifmemes. Let the PIFtopia begin!