Sonic bike project with GPS-triggered audio and community composition, Taipei, 2024
Project Description
Have you ever imagined that riding a bicycle could become a site-specific musical performance?
Place Making Music explores how urban cycling can become a mode of musical performance, reimagining public space through GPS-triggered sound systems and community-based composition. Initiated by the Sonic Sensory Lab and artist Po-Hao Chi, with British artist Kaffe Matthews and the Bicrophonic Research Institute, the project took place at C-LAB during the 2024 Wandering Music Festival.
Through workshops and field rides, participants turned their experiences of the city into a sonic bike opera. Riding through mapped sound zones, each cyclist activated music and recorded sounds specific to Taipei’s neighborhoods. The project offered a real-time sound journey that blurred the boundary between audience and performer, inviting riders to navigate the city as both listener and composer.
作品介紹
你曾經想像過，腳踏車騎行這樣的日常行為，也能變成一場音樂表演嗎？
《地方創造音樂》由聲化感官實驗室與藝術家紀柏豪發起，邀請英國聲音藝術家 Kaffe Matthews 與移動聲音研究中心（Bicrophonic Research Institute）來臺共同創作，以空總 C-LAB 為基地，於 2024 年「聲徜音樂節」期間展開。計畫把騎行路線當作樂譜，讓單車在城市中移動時觸發聲音，重新安排公共空間裡的聆聽方式。
參與者在兩個週末的工作坊中錄下街區的環境聲，編輯成素材，再以聲響地圖系統把聲音配置到特定路段。騎乘時，單車依 GPS 定位播放對應內容，每個轉彎帶出不同的敘事。臺北的街道成為一座持續變動的音樂劇場，騎士同時是聽者與作曲者。
Workshop and Community Engagement 工作坊與公眾參與
📍 C-LAB Taiwan Sound Lab and surrounding areas, Taipei｜C-LAB 臺灣聲響實驗室與周邊地區
🗓 Workshop 工作坊：September 7–15, 2024
🗓 Public ride 公眾騎乘體驗： September 14–15, 2024
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- Rider waving in the C-LAB courtyard before the public ride
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- Two riders heading out on a wet road at C-LAB
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- Riders passing a construction hoarding on the route
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- Two riders coming back along a tree-lined road
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- A participant setting off on a sonic bike
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- Sonic bikes lined up in the workshop space
Sonic Bike Creative Workshop 聲響單車共創工作坊
Over two weekends in September 2024, participants joined a creative workshop at C-LAB to build site-specific sound journeys using GPS-triggered bikes. Participants recorded field sounds, edited compositions, and mapped routes across the city using the Sonic-Bikes Mapper system. The process encouraged personal reflection on sound, environment, and movement.
參與者與藝術家一同穿梭街道，觀察並記錄臺北的聲音軌跡，接著編輯素材，並利用聲響地圖系統在城市空間中設置聲音點，逐步完成屬於自己的聲音旅程。
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- A rider testing a sonic bike on the C-LAB grounds
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- Riding through the grounds on a rainy day
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- Participants presenting their sound routes
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- Sound zones drawn in the Sonic-Bikes Mapper
Public Ride Experience 公眾騎乘體驗
On the second weekend, the project opened to the public with a guided sonic ride around C-LAB and nearby neighborhoods. Audience members, equipped with GPS-activated bikes, encountered shifting sonic environments as they moved. Each turn revealed a different narrative composed by the participants. The streets of Taipei were transformed into an operatic soundscape powered by movement.
第二個週末開放公眾參與。市民騎著裝有 GPS 聲音系統的單車，從 C-LAB 出發繞行周邊街區，隨著位置改變，聽見不同的聲音內容。有些學員重現了城市中已經消失的聲音，有些則捕捉當下的聲景，依所到之處配置素材。每一條路線都留下一則屬於臺北街頭的聲音故事。
Sonic Bike Workshop participants at C-LAB.
System Description 技術描述
Each sonic bike was equipped with a Raspberry Pi-based GPS sound system and directional speaker. As the rider entered designated zones mapped via the Sonic-Bikes Mapper, specific audio tracks were triggered based on their location. These included environmental recordings, personal reflections, and experimental compositions created during the workshop. Movement and space replaced traditional musical timing, transforming the city into a responsive and ephemeral sound environment.
每台聲響單車配備以 Raspberry Pi 為核心的 GPS 聲音系統與指向性喇叭。騎士進入聲響地圖上標定的區域時，系統依定位觸發對應音檔，內容包含環境錄音、個人敘述，以及工作坊期間完成的實驗性創作。移動與空間取代了傳統的音樂時間安排，讓城市成為會回應的聲音環境。
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- GPS unit and speaker mounted on the rear rack
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- Sonic bikes fitted with speakers, ready for the public ride
Credits 製作名單
- Artists 藝術家｜Kaffe Matthews 凱菲・馬修、Po-Hao Chi 紀柏豪
- Organizer 主辦單位｜ZONESOUND CREATIVE 融聲創意
- Collaborator 協辦單位｜C-LAB Taiwan Sound Lab 臺灣聲響實驗室
- Executive Organizers 執行單位｜Bicrophonic Research Institute 移動聲音研究中心、Sonic Sensory Lab 聲化感官實驗室
- Sponsors 贊助單位｜Department of Cultural Affairs, Taipei City 臺北市政府文化局、TSMC Education and Culture Foundation 台積電文教基金會
- Collaborating Institutions 合作單位｜Goethe-Institut Taipei 台北歌德學院、Cycling Lifestyle Foundation 自行車新文化基金會、Berlin Senate 柏林參議院
- Technical Consultant 技術顧問｜CHEN Bo-Yu 陳柏昱
- AI Application Development AI 應用開發｜LAI Zhu-Yuan 賴竹原
- Assistants 活動協力｜Fifi HU 胡貽斐、CHEN Min-Ching 陳旻靖、HOU Sih-Yi 侯思屹、LIN Ting-Hui 林庭慧
- Photography / Editing 拍攝剪輯｜LIN Ting-Hui 林庭慧