Have you ever wondered why we like music?
That was the question on which our latest immersive multimedia feature Synapse was built. It examines the field of music psychology which has made huge strides in helping us understand the hidden workings of the human brain. As technology has advanced, allowing us to chart brain activity, we are also at a point where scientists can read the sounds we perceive directly from our minds.
In this unique feature we look at the far-reaching implications of this astonishing finding, such as the ability to map creativity itself and whether Artificial Intelligence could or should be engineered to replicate this. If creating art is no longer a way of defining humans (because computers can do it) then how do we see ourselves?
Aside from these philosophical discussions, the progress of technology has influenced the creation of music itself, with numerous artists (some of whom, like Professor Eduardo Miranda and Professor Michael Casey, are also scientists) composing songs which express or interact with our brain activity.
As well as interviews with eminent professors such as Goldsmiths' Laurent Stewart and Dartmouth College's Michael Casey, Synapse features striking art from The Night Sea, heading up our own unique brand of 'living' photographs. Sometimes startling, sometimes uncomfortable to listen to, the soundtrack has been curated as a showcase of the way the field has affected the world of music and how it might change further.
In many ways Synapse symbolises the Macho Zapp ethos - presenting new ways of looking at music in a unique and striking way.