WFS Festival 2018 🔊

The Game of Life Foundation

The Game of Life Foundation was founded on September 13th 1999.

The foundation’s main objective is to organise projects in the field of spatial reproduction of electronic music.

The Game of Life Foundation acts as facilitator in the process of creation, production, programming and publicity of cutting edge spacial sound projects.

We curate and produce artistic programmes which showcase a diverse range of high-quality, innovative electronic music projects.

We offer composers (sound artists/artists/musicians) a unique opportunity to work with our highly specialised Wave Field Synthesis system. This system is fully mobile making it the only mobile WFS system in the world. Our WFS system comprises of 192 specially designed loudspeakers and provides listeners with an immersive sonic experience that is impossible to experience in ones own home environment (however impressive current surround systems may be).

How it started

The name “The Game of Life” Foundation originates from an independent project first realised by Artist and composer Arthur Sauer and organised by Erwin Roebroeks.

This project comprised of an 8-channel 3D sound system which was housed in a custom designed inflatable tent constructed in the shape of an igloo. The inflatable and mobile tent structure enabled this movable project to travel to a wide range of different locations giving  rise to the motto ‘the stage is coming to you’! This original project was an enormous success with the public due largely to how approachable and accessible it was. This important aspect enabled the piece to be experienced by a diverse and multicultural audience. The experience of this project then led to the next step which was the creative conception to design and build a mobile WFS system.

Wave Field Synthesis (WFS)

With our custom designed WFS system it is possible to create a unique acoustical setting. The flexability of the system resulting from its mobile design allows it to be physically moved and easily set up at any location .

In 2004 our research group set off for the Fraunhofer Institute in Ilmenau, Germany  along with several composers to listen to their own WFS system. The spatial rendering of the system was indeed convincing and impressive however our group also felt that improvements to such a system could be made whilst substantially lowering the financial cost of production . So this is what eventually led us to design our own unique WFS system. Wouter Snoei developed the software, Raviv Ganchrow designed and constructed the speakers and Jan Trützschler programmed the synchronization between the computers. We were fortunate to be able to use the the anechoic chamber of the Delft University of Technology including technical assistance to carry out our testbed research. Measurements  taken by the Delft University of Technology department proved that our design and implementation met the quality requirements needed for such a system. Our software is OpenSource which enables it to be freely adapted and updated by any interested user (e.g currently students at the Institute of Sonology are programming new extensions for the system)

In november 2006 our WFS system premiered with the series ‘THE 192 Loudspeaker Experience (Focused Sound in Sonic Space)’.

Extra lunch-time concerts had to be facilitated during the festival to cater for the immense and unexpected interest from the public in the WFS system Experience.

Since then there has been great interest from composers, programming directors and Institutes who wish to explore and work with our System.