CellF's creator Guy Ben-Ary spent 4 years collaborating with scientists and other artists to develop a musical instrument controlled by a neural network bio-engineered from his own skin cells. CellF is the world’s first neural synthesizer. It is made up of a biological neural network that grows in a Petri dish and a bank of synthesizers, it is a completely autonomous instrument. No computers are involved so there is no programming, only biological matter and analogue circuits; a ‘wet-analogue’ instrument.
The “brain” of cellF is a biological neural network taken from the artist’s arm. Skin cells were surgically removed with a biopsy were turned into neural stem cells using Induced Pluripotent Stem cell technology. With these he created what is now known as an “external brain”. Using an 8x8 grid of electrodes, cellF can record and transmit electrical signals (potential electric energy), making it an interface with the same basic capabilities as a real "brain". Cellf basically turns the activity of the cells into sounds.
There is a short documentary here - https://youtu.be/9QHBnFXbNuU it explains everything better than I ever could.
CellF represents more than just a novel fusion of science and art; it's a melting pot of innovation and creativity. By pushing the boundaries of what's possible, musicians and scientists alike are exploring new frontiers in musical expression and biological engineering, showing the boundless potential of the human imagination by marrying the precision of science with the emotive power of music.
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