Bart Hopkin is a designer and builder of unconventional musical instruments, and a student of musical instruments worldwide. For many years he was publisher and editor of the quarterly journal Experimental Musical Instruments, and he has written several books on musical instruments and their construction. In playing the instruments and performing with them, his focus most recently has been on semi-self-playing instruments ― constructions which, once gotten started, will keep going for a while with just occasional interventions, leaving the player free to layer in sounds from other sources.
The sounds that can be heard intermittently in the room are recordings of Bart’s instruments, including some that are included in this display.