Făbrĭca (from the Latin word meaning "factory" or "atelier," but also, by extension, "the act of working, creating," "to make," "to produce," "to generate") is a three-dimensional virtual sound environment linking sound and movement in space, designed for exploration with a joystick.

Conceived in the spring of 2020, Făbrĭca explores new forms of musical experience through virtual reality. The visual interface, created by artist Giovanni Muzio, was designed to link musical structures with movement in space.

Făbrĭca exists in two formats:

• Installation

   Presented from February 22, 2022, to April 25, 2022, as part of the exhibition “Réseaux- Mondes” at the Centre Pompidou in Paris.

• Live Performance for twelve musicians and 3D sound environment (duration: 15–23 minutes)

   First performed in concert by Ensemble C-Barré (Marseille, France) on April 5, 2021, in the Grande Salle of the Centre Pompidou in Paris.


Project genesis and artistic goals :

The idea for Făbrĭca initially came as a reaction to the Covid-19 related lock-down that sneaked up the entire world and forced artists to face uncertainty regarding their future projects.
Limitations may become a trigger for creative responses, from this perspective, the limitations were reconsidered as a potential opportunity to:

• rethink modalities interaction between composer, musicians and audience

• offer an interactive musical experience

• imagine a non-linear musical narrative, where form results from interaction. Here, the concept of "form" becomes one of many possible pathways within a network of musical relationships

• exploring evolutional forms in music (emphasizing the creative process itself).

The project aims to provide an immersive musical experience. Făbrĭca was conceived as a "map" of a sonic world that visitors can explore freely, making each visitor an active participant in the musical work.

Musical topology :

Făbrĭca is composed of sound files arranged in a virtual 3D space (entirely coded in JavaScript) according to a specific topology.
The visitor navigates this space as if it were a territory, where a network of musical relationships is established by the composer.
Musical form thus emerges uniquely from each visitor's exploration of this sonic geography. Visitors experience time and space subjectively, following their personal paths through the sounds.

Evolutionary music :

Hosted on a web page, Făbrĭca is designed to evolve and grow over time, rooted in an ongoing creative process. Both the composer and potentially the visitor can add, change, and modify the content and timing of musical elements, creating new spatial and temporal relationships.

1. Installation

Făbrĭca exists as a permanent web installation at this link:

fabrica.bencello.net

After selecting the desired duration of the experience, visitors can navigate a 3D virtual sound world using a mouse and keyboard.
As they draw their own path through this sonic universe, visitors explore the relationships between sounds and visual architectures, which shape the evolution of the musical discourse.
This version was presented to the public as part of the exhibition “Réseaux-Mondes” at the Centre Pompidou in Paris (February 22–April 25, 2022).

2. Live Performance

(Duration: 15–23 minutes)

The concert version of Făbrĭca synthesizes the potential of the virtual experience with live performance.
The conductor traces a path and guides the ensemble of musicians through the exploration of musical materials in interaction with the virtual space.
The virtual environment of Făbrĭca was presented as part of a musical performance involving Ensemble C- Barré (Marseille, France), GMEM, and IRCAM on March 18, 2022, in the Grande Salle at the Centre Pompidou.