Plant Music #1 (Knas + MIDI Sprout)

Published on Jan 24, 2017 Smokey Quartz

"In this video I try out the MIDI Sprout for the first time, connecting a Flamingo Flower (Anthurium andraeanum) to the Knas Ekdahl Polygamist synthesizer. The MIDI Sprout is a “Biodata Sonification Device” that allows plants to play synthesizers! Everyone and everything should be allowed to play synthesizers! Listen to how the sounds change as I touch the plant leaves and flowers."

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Hiking with MIDI Sprout - Sick Plant vs. Healthy Plant

Published on Jan 23, 2017 MIDI Sprout

"Data Garden founder, Joe Patitucci, takes us on a hike through Than Sadet National Forest in Thailand and listens to native plants. Tune in as he connects his MIDI Sprout to two different plants - a healthy plant and a plant that's being eaten by pests. Take note the difference in the characteristics in the patterns produced by these two plants and post your observations below!"

Island Hopping with MIDI Sprout

Published on Nov 26, 2016 MIDI Sprout

"Data Garden founder, Joe Patitucci, shares tips on keeping your MIDI Sprout in top shape along with an inside look at what he carries to allow him to make plant music in wherever he is in the world.

For more info on how to get the most out of your MIDI Sprout, visit our user forum at http://support.midisprout.com

Joe's Travel Kit

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Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe (Lichens) Uses MIDI Sprout

Published on May 8, 2016 MIDI Sprout

"Excerpt of an interview and performance with Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe from his residency at the Exploratorium in San Francisco, California"

"DATA GARDEN RELEASES 60 MIDI Sprouts FOR SALE ON MAY 22nd AT NOON EST

The arts collective Data Garden is announcing another sale of their highly anticipated MIDI Sprout device that allows people to generate electronic music from their houseplants. Two years after their successful Kickstarter campaign, the collective is making 60 of these rare devices available for purchase to the general public on May 22nd at Noon EST.

'We’ve received a steady flow of interest from people who missed our Kickstarter and want to buy a MIDI Sprout,' says Joe Patitucci, artist and founder of Data Garden. 'While we are open to partnering with hardware manufacturers to make more, we currently have no plans to do so. With only 60 units available and more than 900 people on our waiting list, this is an important time to act in order to buy one as soon as the sale goes live.'

Interested people can go to www.MIDISprout.com to signup for email updates as the sale approaches. The collective will launch an internet pop-up shop at the end of the month during Moogfest in North Carolina, where they will be leading plant music meditation and composition workshops.

'This is a really exciting time for us,' muses Jon Shapiro, Data Garden performer and practitioner. 'I’ve met such wonderful people performing and doing installations with MIDI Sprout over the past two years. We would connect deeply on how this device can change people’s personal and artistic lives. I always felt a twinge of remorse when they would ask how to buy one and I didn’t have a concrete answer. Though the amount we can offer is disproportionate to the large demand, this is a wonderful step forward.'

The musical collaborations that Shapiro is referring to have included musicians like Laraaji, Greg Fox, Lichens, King Britt and Bryce Hackford. Meanwhile, Patitucci continues to exhibit his sound sculptures while leading group meditations and furthering his listening practice under guidance from Pauline Oliveros. Sam Cusumano, the engineering mind behind the MIDI Sprout is working on an upcoming collaboration with John Zorn.

About Data Garden
Data Garden creates experiences through music and technology. We seek to connect people and nature in new ways.

Begun as a record label releasing downloadable album codes printed on plantable seed paper, Data Garden has become a worldwide public art project building community and connection to living plants through art."

Update via Samuel Cusumano in the comments: "Get detailed information about the MIDI Sprout, code, schematics, board designs, and instruction at support.midisprout.com! I'm always happy to discuss the technology. Understand how your tools work!"

Data Garden Achieves MIDI Sprout Kickstarter Goal

"Data Garden are pleased to announce that they have reached their Kickstarter goal for the MIDI Sprout, a device that allows people to listen to music from the natural biorhythms of their houseplants through synthesizers, computer and iOS devices. The crowdfunding campaign is live through Sunday April 20th and, for now, is the only opportunity to order a MIDI Sprout.

The campaign which gathered coverage from music and pop culture websites achieved it’s targeted $25,000 on Sunday, 4/13. While this success guarantees that the MIDI Sprout will go into limited production this summer, the campaign is still active for the rest of the week, coming to a close on Sunday, April 20th.

"Data Garden is not a hardware company. We are a group of artists committed to creating opportunities for the public to experience their environment in new ways," says Data Garden Director, Joe Patitucci. "We would like to produce more MIDI Sprouts down the line but the goal right now is to get this technology out there so our friends and fans can experiment. This may be the last opportunity for people to order a MIDI Sprout, so it’s important that they act now and get one while they can."

Many cite the introduction of the MIDI Sprout as the beginning of the DIY Biofeedback movement. The week between achieving the financial goal and the formal close of the Kickstarter campaign allows those interested in the movement to fund the MIDI Sprout beyond this limited run."

Connecting MIDI Sprout to an iOS Device

Published on Apr 1, 2014 Data Garden·14 videos

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New Hardware Allows Plants to Play Synthesizers at SXSW Interactive

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/datagarden/midi-sprout-biodata-sonification-device

"Data Garden announces MIDI Sprout at SXSW Interactive

Austin, TX - March 6, 2014 - Data Garden, known for it’s art installations of plants playing electronic music, announced the debut of it’s revolutionary instrument called MIDI Sprout.

MIDI Sprout condenses plant sonification technology into a handheld device, allowing people to turn their own house plants into music.

A Kickstarter will be launched today as part of a three day performative installation at South By South West Interactive. The installation will be on view at showcases by Ableton and Moog, sharing bills with the likes of Deadalus and Gary Numan.

“People have been asking us countless questions about how we make music with plants,” said Joe Patitucci, Director and Founder of Data Garden. “We can’t wait for them to bring the MIDI Sprout into their home and do it themselves!”

MIDI Sprout is now available for pre-order through the Kickstarter page. Different levels of rewards come with other groundbreaking musical hardware from Data Garden’s friends at Sub Pac and Critter and Guitari. These packages give backers everything they need to create immersive biofeedback art in their own homes.

'We see this as the beginning of the global DIY biofeedback movement,” explains Patitucci. “Biofeedback art is an amazing aesthetic and therapeutic tool. This is the first time the technology is available to the public free from the influence of institutions.'"