Gamelatron Cemerlang is a Sonic Kinetic Sculpture made by Aaron Taylor Kuffner.  Kuffner composes all the music for the sculptures to perform - Cemerlang is tuned to a variation of Central Javanese Pelog using 6 notes.  Cemerlang in Bahasa Indonesian means bright, or shinny and in Jakarta slang might translate to something like "Bling". This artwork is made of 27 mirror polished bronze Javanese gongs on 5 free standing powder coated steel towers.

Cemerlang: Sweet Bling

Gamelatron ViaOro is a sonic kinetic sculpture made by Aaron Taylor Kuffner. It is comprised of 35 gongs (ranging in diameter from 120cm to 20cm) and 8 metal keys made from bronze and steel, each retrofitted with electromagnet mallet mechanism triggered by a physical computing system, mounted on 10 free standing sculptures.

Gamelatron ViaOro

Gamelatron Bidadari features 10 Trompong kettle gongs, 12 Reyong kettle gongs, 4 Klentong, Kempli, Tawar, Gong Agung, Gong Suwuk and 2 Kumpur all fitted with mechanical mallets on 4 powder-coated and hand-gilded steel mounts.  This artwork was installed at the Renwick gallery at the Smithsonian Museum in Washington DC from April 1, 2018 - Jan 21, 2019.  These 2 long form compositions consisting of several movements were composed onsite by Aaron Taylor Kuffner, written to interact with the acoustics of the space and the temperament the exhibition as a whole.  They were performed everyday during the 9 month exhibition period.

Gamelatron Bidadari at The Renwick Gallery - No Spectators

Gamelatron Gandaberunda, Long Form arrangements

This album was made from a live recording at the Rumah Budaya Tembi December 23, 2005. 11 compositions featuring the sounds of Gamelan Jawa and Gamelan Sekaten from Yogyakarta, Gamelan Belaganjur, Gong Gede and Genggong from Bali, Kalimbung ensemble from the Batak region in Sumatra, and Sapaq from Kalimantan; performed with field recordings from Mentawai, Sumatra, Java, Bali, Flores, Sumba, Sawu, and Roti Islands. The sounds of the instruments and field recordings were compiled into a sampler and then were sequenced together into interlocking layers, similar to the theoretical process inherent in Gamelan and shared by modern electronic music. The scores were pre-composed in pieces and then performed as a live arrangement with sampler and effects. The majority of the scores were also written in an Indonesian cipher notation (Sistem Notasi Nusantara).

Tip Toeing on the rims of the Kumpul

Released in September 2006 at Gubuk Damai in Kutuh Kaja Bali as a CD.
The scores were composed through the first half of 2006 and then compiled and/or re-created in July and August before being mastered as a CD.

This album featured 2 compositions made solely on the sacred Gamelan Selonding from Bali as well more experimental “click and pop” tracks combined with a minimal approach to Javanese court gamelan and high energy beat manipulations of Balinese Belaganjur with dense layering of cicada samples from Borneo. Compositions abstractly based on the 2nd Volume were performed live with Ableton software and gamelan instruments, sampling and mixing with prerecorded material.
Playing time: 72:10 in continuous play presenting 4 compositions in 8 tracks
 
1. 	Rejeng Sanje Ungu Melody of Purple Late Afternoons 8:24
 	Movement "Mangkat Jowo" (presented as track 2,3, and 4)
2. 	Sesaji untuk Jalan Terbenan Offering to the Sinking Road 	4:51
3. 	Topeng-Topeng dan Sembahyang Masks and Prayer 	7:08
4. 	Berputar di Kesadaran Macet Rotations through the Traffic Mind 	13:46
5. 	Ketekunan Persistence 	10:36
6. 	Pemungkah Sandiwara Fatamorgana 6:15
7. 	Hutan Malam Seblah Sesungai Night Forest Beside a River 	12:20
8. 	Masikian, To Become One 	8:50

The Orkestra Jangkrik dan Gamelan Listik Aneh, Volume 2

Gamelatron Ombak4 is a sonic kinetic sculpture by Aaron Taylor Kuffner consisting of 13 Bronze gongs, wall mounted on 6 bronze brackets played by electromagnet mechanical mallets triggered by a physical computing system.

Ombak4 - WhirlingHeart

Ombak4 - Remaker

Ombak4 - IntoPlace

Gamelatron ViaOro is a sonic kinetic sculpture made by Aaron Taylor Kuffner.  It is comprised of 35 gongs (ranging in diameter from 120cm to 20cm) and 8 metal keys made from bronze and steel, each retrofitted with electromagnet mallet mechanism triggered by a physical computing system, mounted on 10 free standing sculptures.

The Road Closing

Dual Hati

ViaOro - The Opening

ViaOro - Swing Love

ViaOro - Night Walking

Exhale Twice

Soft Ether Scale

Resonance in Light 3

Love and FLow

Quiet Lucidity

A short collection of field records from the sonic kinetic sculpture Gamelatron Veja Yanta by Aaron Taylor Kuffner, performing compositions in an outdoor pavilion  during a rain storm in the middle of monsoon season on the Andaman Sea.

The Lovers Bliss

Songs written by Aaron Taylor Kuffner
Performed by Gamelatron Jiwa Dan Raga

PacingThru

OnTheOff

This is a live arrangement performed by Aaron Taylor Kuffner on the Gamelatron Gandaberunda On Day 2 of Boom Festival 2018.  The Gamelatron then played it back throughout the week.

Gandaberunda Boom 2018

Songs composed by Aaron Taylor Kuffner
Performed by Gamelatron Pohon Electrum

Where Sky And Land Meet

Gamelatron Gandaberunda is a kinetic sculpture featuring mirror polished Javanese Bronze gongs tuned in Pelog: 2 Gong Agung, 4 kempul, 30 Bonang, 2 Balinese Ceng-Ceng on Red Powder coated steel sculptures with red anodized aluminum and teak wood robotic mallets and 42 interactive LED pucks.  This composition was written for, and performed at 29rooms in Los Angeles in a massive 8000 sq foot windowless space.

Gamelatron Gandaberunda, Oasis In The Void  performed at 29rooms LA 2018

The Mellows Of Here

Written by Aaron Taylor Kuffner, performed by his kinetic Sculpture Gamelatron Bidadari at the Smithsonian Renwick Gallery

Amid The Emotions Of Here And Nowhere

This is a room recording of a single Balinese Trompong with extra gongs borrowed from a Reyong with Gong Agung, Kempur, klentong, kempli and Ceng-Ceng of a composition written by Aaron Taylor Kuffner, aka Zemi17.  The arrangement was created live and performed by the Gamelatron on site in Mahola in Jakut Paku Ubud Gianyar Bali Indonesia on February 12, 2013

Contours at Mahola

This is a Sonic Kinetic Sculpture by Aaron Taylor Kuffner called Body Phone, where you sit between two 150cm diameter patinated Steel gongs with brass knobs that resonate primarily at 36hz and 38hz, on Powder coated steel hangers, with aluminum, wood, bicycle tire and fabric robotic gong mallet mechanisms.  Kuffner composed a series of 2 minute "Sound Massages" for people to experience.

2m - Togetherness

The Lovers Deep Breath

Uplifter

Majestic

The Lover Seeker

The Warp Dance

Digging Up Bones

Lover's Day

Strolling

Gamelatron Roh Ageng
as part of Encountering Resonance: Aaron Taylor Kuffner’s Gamelatron
at the Lyman Allyn Art Museum in New London, Connecticut
February 27 – May 23, 2021

Roh Ageng, means Great Spirit in Javanese language. The artist tuned the artwork to a variation of a 5-tone Indonesian Gamelan scale called Slendro. The artwork consists of 8 vertically hanging hand forged bronze gongs ranging in size from 18 to 38 inches in diameter and pitch from 168 hz to 52 hz.  There are two 48 inch diameter welded steel and brass sub frequency bass gongs that resonant between 35 hz and 41 hz.  There are 3 sets of metallophones consisting of 7 hand forged bronze keys in 3 distinct pitch registries called Demung, Saron and Peking. There are 5 kettle shaped gongs called kenong and 1 small kettle gong called ketuk. All the instruments are retrofitted with mechanical mallets, mounted to powder coated steel sculptural armature.  The mallets are actuated by electromagnetic solenoids which are connected to a physical computing system which transcribes digital compositions written on site by Aaron Taylor Kuffner. Kuffner uses 3 diffused LED bars of light as part of the wall mounted sculpture.

Sending Off

Zemi17 is the electronic music project of sculptor, and composer Aaron Taylor Kuffner releasing records with the Bunker NY.

Zemi in Japanese means cicada. The 17 references the 17-year lifecycle of the periodical cicadas found in the northeast of the United States. This musical project over the last decade and a half has taken on many forms - but has remained routed in the ideals of co-opting the music and culture surrounding electronic dance music in an effort to cross it over to a wider mystery. Zemi17's music is heavily influenced by the sounds of nature and often incorporates both field recordings and algorithms from the insect and bird kingdoms into its production. He performs both as a DJ and Live PA sets in a genre titled Space Haus. His new works have been almost exclusively created for custom built surround sound systems.

As a recording artist Zemi17 began by releasing a series of 17 mix tapes as the musical wing of Cicada Enterprises, and later pressed 7" and 12" records in the late 90s with Europa Disk, Blackkat Sound and Havoc, all of which are sold out. In 2003, he self released a special spool set of 25 original recordings both from studio sessions and live sets created between 1998 and 2003 entitled The New York years. In Indonesia he produced 2 volumes of The Orchestra Jangkrik dan Gamelan Listrik Aneh in 2005 and 2006 respectively, which fused the motif structures of gamelan with cadences of insects. In 2007 he release a minimal techno album entitled The Backdoor to Wisma Langit (Hotel Sky) that was created entirely with gamelan and found samples. Two tracks (Impressions, and Rangda) from Wisma Langit were released in September 2014 on The Bunker NYC label on vinyl and for digital download with 6 new tracks scheduled for release in the Fall of 2015.

As a performing artist Zemi17 has toured the world several times over from the strangest of underground venues from Siberia to Sofia to San Francisco, as well as Live and DJ sets at Portugal's largest electronic music festival Boom and Ireland's largest music festival Electric Picnic.

In addition to Zemi17, Kuffner is the principle artist behind the Gamelatron Project (gamelatron.com), creating sound producing kinetic sculpture featuring instruments from Balinese and Javanese gamelan orchestras retrofitted with robotic mallets. He also performs on electronic wind instruments with Dok Gregory and Peter Principle as the trio called Zero Gravity Thinkers (zgt.me).

Zemi17

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