Lightborne writes us:
Hi, first of all I wanted to say I love the site and have been checking it daily for about a year now, as well as createdigitalmusic. I just came across a clip on youtube that really puts what I’ve seen of people abusing Wii remotes so far to shame. This seems to me to be the first case where it’s passed from the experimental to the creative-use phase. It’s freaking awesome and I’d love to know what software he’s using, perhaps a Max patch?
I’m fairly certain that it’s in fact a Jitter patch — the Mac has the terrific aka.wiiremote object. (See also: CDMusic’s Free Mac Looper for Wii Controller, Wii MIDI Hacking Round-up.)
And the creator is none other than Daito Manabe, the awesome Japanese DJ who created the Turntable-Controlled Vibrating Chaise Longue using Ms. Pinky vinyl. (And, as I recall, he uses Pinky as a vinyl control scheme for VJing as well as music.)
It takes a turntablist to figure out clever ways of using the Wii remote that don’t reinvent the wheel. What I especially like about this is that the whole system becomes self-contained. It definitely pushes me to build a performance system around the Wii controller rather than the other way around. And he gets some nice, expressive controls in there, as well. Thanks to Lightbourne for this!
If you’re using the Wii remote for your live visuals, let us know how it’s going.