Musical Mushroom – Gesture Controller for Crystal Singing Bowls (Europe)
Musical Mushroom – Gesture Controller for Crystal Singing Bowls (Europe)
SoundGalaxies is the first in Europe offering the Musical Mushroom gesture controller for crystal singing bowls. Developed by the original manufacturer in Canada, the Musical Mushroom is a unique sound control device that allows hands-free interaction with crystal singing bowls through intuitive gestures. We provide access, guidance and ordering support for practitioners, performers and sound professionals across Europe.
The Musical Mushroom is compatible with SoundGalaxies crystal singing bowls and all major manufacturers except the very thin bowls. It works with standard crystal singing bowls available on the market, making it a versatile solution for practitioners who already own bowls and want to expand their expressive possibilities without replacing their instruments.
Below you can find the original product description provided by the manufacturer, explaining the concept, technology and artistic vision behind the Musical Mushroom.
The Musical Mushroom®, enables sound practitioners to control their singing bowls or similar resonant instruments using simple hand gestures using a small removable exciter coil glued to the inside surface of the bowl. This new approach replaces the use of the traditional mallet. Electro-mechanical vibrations excite the bowl at its resonant frequencies under the guidance of the performer, whether in close proximity using hand gestures or via wired (USB) control using the MIDI protocol. One of the many benefits of replacing the mallet include the ability to physically extend the performer’s range, as well as to automatically hold a drone note while the performer is free to simultaneously play other bowls or instruments.
A novel hand gesture sensor enables local interactions using the performer’s hands hovering over the bowl. The measured hand position above the bowl is used to modulate the sound volume. This fluid up-and-down movement is very intuitive and replaces the circular movement of the mallet. This enables a new way of interacting and playing with this traditional instrument.
Finally, the ability to wirelessly network multiple bowls during a performance enables the artist to spread bowls across an audience and control them all via a central location instead of being restricted to the arm’s length mallet reach, giving the spectators a more visceral experience of lying down between bowls during a sound bath performance. Add some super cool LED lighting effects such as the candle flicker and you have an engaging audio-visual performance!
In addition, the Musical Mushroom® will automatically detect the hand movement pattern, whether waving or in a fixed position and will continue it indefinitely when the hand is removed. This is useful for generating an automatic drone note effect, enabling the performer to move to playing other bowls without needing to constantly keep the bowl resonating. To stop the bowl, the hand is simply waved in and out of the beam quickly.
How Does it Work?
In local interaction mode, an invisible eye-safe laser beam is emitted vertically above the unit to measure the distance from the Musical Mushroom’s® top surface to a hand hovering above the bowl. The presence of a hand will cause the bowl to vibrate constantly at its resonant frequency for as long as the hand is present. The closer the hand is the bowl, the louder the sound. Moving the hand up and down causes a pleasing tremolo effect, modulating the amplitude in a similar way achieved by the traditional mallet rotating along the rim of the bowl.
Why Buy the Musical Mushroom from SoundGalaxies
• Compatible with SoundGalaxies singing bowls and all crystal singing bowls on the market, except the very thin
• First European distributor of the Musical Mushroom
• Direct cooperation with the Canadian manufacturer
• Support and guidance for European customers
• Secure ordering through direct contact
The Musical Mushroom products
Order the Musical Mushroom in Europe
Musical Mushroom units are available in Europe through SoundGalaxies. Orders are handled directly via our contact form to ensure availability, compatibility and personal guidance. If you would like to purchase a Musical Mushroom or request pricing and current kit options, please contact us and we will assist you personally.