The last years Alexandros carried out research on the Fields of haptic digital musical instruments, digital fabrication of musical instruments, digital audio effects, interactive composition, physical modelling, interactive sound design for people with disabilities, data sonification and collaborated and with academics, artists and composers from France, Portugal, Germany, Greece, UK, Spain and USA. In 2012 he has been selected to be part of the Welsh Crucible where participants selection is based their research excellence and commitment to interdisciplinary work. His work has also included in the Research Excellence Framework in 2014. He is an academic member of Fab Lab Cardiff and member of the Speech and Accessibility Laboratory in the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens.
In 2013 and in collaboration with another four European organisations (ACROE in France, IAAC in Spain, AVARTS in Greece, ZKM in Germany), he received a European grant for the European Art Science Technology Network – EASTN project (2014-2015). The project scored 100% in the selection process and aims at contributing to make digital creativity and artistic works more accessible to the society, by promoting the development of a deep awareness of the current artistic trends and technologies. It supports artistic creation and dissemination at a trans-national level, thus fostering intercultural dialogue despite the disparate economic situations of European countries.
He is currently working on a design / digital fabrication project entitled More God Article with Ant Mace from User Center Research and Design company in Bristol UK and the Aris Bezas from the Ionion University in Corfu Greece. The project is funded by the Research And Enterprises in Arts and Creative Technologies – Arts and Humanities Research Council and is a continuation of previous project entitled The God Article.
Moreover Alexandros is composing a new musical / visual work for an interactive instrument he designed and developed in Fab Lab Cardiff and which he will continue as an invited resident artist the Centre for Art and Media ZKM in Karlsruhe in 2015. Finally he has an an ongoing creative project founded by Santander, regarding an interactive music performance with specifically designed and digitally fabricated stage design with researchers and designers from the University of Porto and Olivia Kotsifa from CSAD.
Another research topic, which he has started exploring during his PhD research, concerns the analysis of the concepts and techniques of digital audio effects and musical sound transformations, and their transposition in the framework of physical modelling, digital simulation and haptic interaction. The last 3 years he has been designing and developing open source / open hardware haptic interfaces and a library of physical models (synthesisers and digital audio effects) for musical creation in collaboration with the computer music researcher Dr Edgar Berdahl from Louisiana State University. This led to a series of publication, a best paper award in Sound and Music Computing Conference in 2012 and a series of musical compositions performed internationally.
Previous Research
Alexandros has just finished two Welsh Crucible funded projects, related to data sonification and to the creation of musical compositions and audiovisual installations based on scientific research. The Quantum Music was a project in collaboration with Dr Daniel Burgarth from Aberystwyth University and investigated the sonification and the development of an audiovisual art installation of controlled quantum dynamical systems. The Stem Cell Orchestra was a project in collaboration with Dr Imtiaz Khan, Dr Neil Stephens and Prof Alastair Sloan from Cardiff University, related to stem cell production.
He has also finished recently a project in collaboration with Dr John O’Connell (Cardiff University) and Anthony Mace (User Centred Research & Design) with title The God Article funded by the Research And Enterprises in Arts and Creative Technologies – Arts and Humanities Research Council. The project was related to the design and the development of an interactive 3D printed Ney (a traditional Turkish instrument with deep cultural significance) to enable users to learn it online via exclusively developed gesture visualisation application. The augmented musical instrument was exhibited during the London Design festival in September 2014.
Alexandros contributed in the setup of Fab Lab Cardiff, graduated from the Fab Academy course and obtained his Diploma in July 2014. The Fab Academy is a Digital Fabrication Program directed by Prof Neil Gershenfeld of MIT’s Center For Bits and Atoms and based on MIT’s rapid prototyping course. The Fab Academy began as an outreach project from the CBA, and has since spread to Fab Labs (416 to date) around the world.
Alexandros’ previous musical research activities concerned an interactive composition he created at the Bauhaus University in Weimar with the choreographer and pioneer digital performer Robert Wechsler. He has also participated in other multidisciplinary research projects from CSAD such as the “Multicoloured Magic” with the graphic designer Dr Wendy Keay-Bright where he developed simple interactive sound applications. In 2010 he has collaborated with the architect Olivia Kotsifa and the snowpark and snowboarding event design company HO5 in France, for the design of a mixed media interactive performance, which integrated space design, sound, music, visuals and snowboarding. Other collaborative research projects with the sonic artist Jon Pigott are related to mechanical sound design and composition by physical thinking using digital and electromechanical means.
Click here to view Dr Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos’s papers and publications on Cardiff Metropolitan University’s DSpace repository.
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, Daniel Burgarth 2014, “Sonification of Controlled Quantum Dynamics”, in
the Proceedings of International Computer Music Conference – Sound and Music Computing Conference ICMC-SCM2014, Athens, Greece
Kontogeorgakopoulos, Alexandros: Kotsifa, Olivia (2013) “My Content / My Space / My Music” in
Organised Sound, Vol. 18, Issue 1, Cambridge University Press, 2013, p.22
Berdahl, Edgar, Kontogeorgakopoulos, Alexandros “The FireFader: Simple, Open-Source, and Reconfigurable Haptic Force Feedback for Musicians”,
Computer Music Journal , Spring 2013, Vol. 37, No. 1, 2013 MIT Press.Pages 23-34
Kontogeorgakopoulos, A; Weschler, R; Keay-Bright, W. (2013) ed Kouroupetroglou, G “Camera-Based Motion-Tracking and Performing Arts for persons with Motor Disabilities and Autism”, in
Disability Informatics and Web Accessibility for Motor Limitations. IGI Global, USA.
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos and Georgios Kouroupetroglou “Low Cost Force-Feedback Interaction with Haptic Digital Audio Effects” in E. Efthimiou, G. Kouroupetroglou and S. Fotinea (Eds) “Gesture and Sign Language in Human-Computer Interaction and Embodied Communication”, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Vol. 7206, pp. 48-57, Springer-Verlag, 2012
Edgar Berdahl, Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, 2012, “Engraving-Hammering-Casting: Exploring the Ergotic Medium for Live Musical Performance”, in the Proceedings of International Computer Music Conference ICMC2012, Ljubljana
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, 2012, “Exploring the Ergotic Medium for Live Musical Performance”, on the Proceedings of INTIME 2012 Symposium, Coventry University
Dilmore Mike, Kontogeorgakopoulos Alexandros, 2012 “”Touch Screen Gestures: Towards a New Control Paradigm for Digital Musical Instruments””, in the Proceeding of Live Interfaces: Performance, Art, Music Conference, University Of Leeds, UK
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, Olivia Kotsifa, Matthias Erichsen, 2011 “From Snow [to Space to Movement] to Sound”, in the Proceedings of Sound and Music Computing Conference SMC11, Italy
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, Giorgios Kouroupetroglou, 2011, “Simple Cases of Low Cost Force-Feedback Haptic Interaction with Haptic Digital Audio Effects”, 9th International Gesture Workshop, Athens, Greece
J. Pigott, A. Kontogeorgakopoulos, “Physical Thinking: Two Approaches to Mechanical Sound Design”, in the Proceedings of International Computer Music Conference ICMC2011, England
Olivia Kotsifa, Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, 2011, “Interactive Music and Architectural design for a Snowpark Event”, 2nd Annual International Conference on Visual and Performing Arts, Athens, Greece
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, Claude Cadoz, 2008, “Designing and Synthesizing Delay-Based Digital Audio Effects Using the CORDIS-ANIMA Physical Modeling Formalism”, in the Proceedings of Sound and Music Computing Conference SMC08, Germany
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, Claude Cadoz, 2007, “Filtering Within the Framework of the Mass-Interaction Physical Modelling and of Haptic Gestural Interaction”, in the Proceedings of Digital Audio Effects DAFX07, France
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, Claude Cadoz, 2007, “Physical Modelling as a Proposed Framework for the Conception, the Design and the Implementation of Sound Transformations”, in the Proceedings of International Computer Music Conference ICMC2007, Denmark
Selected Exhibitions/Performances
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, Aris Bezas (visual programming), Cells 2015, interactive audiovisual composition with Cardiff Gamelan Ensemble, Cardiff, UK
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, Daniel Burgarth, Quantum Music #001 sound installation 2015, Athens Science Festival 2015 – Art Science, Athens, Greece
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, Equal = 1 (ca. 4’) for hackable instrument D-Box, 2014, Queen Mary University, London, UK
Ant Mace, Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, John O’Connell, The God Article (Objects Sandbox Showcase), 2014, Christie’s Gallery, London Design Festival, London, UK
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos and Edgar Berdahl, Engraving Hammering Casting (ca. 6’) duo with haptic interfaces, 2014, International Computer Music Conference – Sound and Music Computing Conference ICMC-SCM2014, Athens, Greece
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, Aris Bezas (programming), Tangible Sounds / Tangible Portraits interactive audiovisual installation, 2014, Tsepelovo Art Gallery, Greece
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, Metronom V2 (ca.7’) live audiovisual composition for custom made haptic faders, 2014, 10th International Fab Lab Conference and Fab Lab Festival, Barcelona, Spain
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, s0’32’’ / 9’06’’ (8’) live audiovisual composition for keyboard, 2011, Art Science Technology Innovation Workshop (s0’32’’ / 9’06 ), U Artstow art centre, Warsaw, Poland
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, Metronom V1 (ca.7’) live audiovisual composition for custom made haptic faders, 2013, INTIME 2013 Symposium (Metronom V1), Coventry University, Coventry, UK
Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos, Guitar improvisation with Electronics, Mantis festival: 1st MANTIS Battle of Gestures and Textures 2010, NOVARS Research Center, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
Awards
August 2015: Santander Research Mobility Award, funded by Santander Universities, £1,000
Jan 2015-May 2015 More God Article (co-investigator), funded by Research And Enterprises in Arts and Creative Technologies – Arts and Humanities Research Council, £3,000
Mar 2014-Sep 2014 The God Article (co-investigator), funded by Research And Enterprises in Arts and Creative Technologies – Arts and Humanities Research Council, £36,000
Jan 2014-Dec 2015 European Art Science Technology Network (project manager for Cardiff School of Art and Design – proposal received 100% points), Culture Programme (2007-2013) / Budget 2013-Cooperation Projects (Strand 1.2.1), funded by the European Union, £200,000
Dec 2013-Jan 2014 Quantum Music (co-investigator), Welsh Crucible grant funded by a consortium of Welsh universities in partnership with the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales, £6,895
Dec 2013-Jan 2014 Stem Cell Orchestra (principal investigator), Welsh Crucible grant funded by a consortium of Welsh universities in partnership with the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales, £9,754
Jun 2013–Jul 2013: Santander Research Mobility Award, funded by Santander Universities, £2,000
Jun 2013–Jul 2013: Strategic Insight Program with Ableton company, funded by Higher Education Funding Council for Wales, £2250
Jan 2007-Dec 2013 ERASITECHNIS Project (project collaborator) (Program THALIS of the National Strategic Reference Framework, ESPA 2007-2013, funded by the European Union and National resources)
Jan 2011-Jul 2011 Multi-coloured Musical Magic Project (project collaborator), funded by University of Wales Institute Cardiff Research & Enterprise Investment Fund, £20,000
May 2011–June 2011: Strategic Insight Program with ACROE, funded by Higher Education Funding Council for Wales, £2,100
Oct 2010–Apr 2011: Reverse Strategic Insight Program with ACROE assosiation, funded by Higher Education Funding Council for Wales, £1,500
Oct 2010–Apr 2011: Strategic Insight Program with HO5 company, funded by Higher Education Funding Council for Wales, £3,000
Sep 2006–Sep 2008: MIRA, funded by Région Rhône-Alpes, France, 12,000€
Jan 2006–Jan 2008: PLATON, funded by EGIDE – Service Recherche et Entreprises, France, 5,600 €
Oct 2006–Nov 2006: AIRE CULTURELES, funded by Ministre de l’Enseignement supérieur et de la Recherche, France, 2,000€
