How to convert images into sound
Recently, I composed a piece of electronic music using an interesting method. With that method you can use images to produce sounds.
I used Coagula, a free "image synth” program that converts images into sounds. This allows you to compose the sound you want in a visual form. But first, you need to understand how it works.
[you can download it from here]
Draw your sound
In Coagula you can edit, or create an image from scratch. You can also use any image from your computer, or make one in an external program (like photoshop) and use Coagula to turn it into sound. Let’s see how the program “translates” the image:
The X-axis of the image is the time. Coagula reads the image from
left to right
The Y-axis is the pitch. Higher pitches at the top of the image, bass to the bottom
The black colour means silence. Black is your canvas. Darker colours are more silent that bright ones.
The red colours mean left (pan).
The green colours mean right.
The blue colours produce noise.
Examples
Let's hear this magnificent picture of the planet Saturn (Note: You probably shouldn't hear it in high volume. It's going to be a little noisy)
Before we proceed, I should say that if you have unwanted noise in your sound file, you can edit it with other programs later (more info below). This image produces too much noise, because of the giant cluster of frequencies at the center (the body of Saturn). In the program, the results of an image may change, depending on the render options. Let’s hear a couple more examples.
In the next one we will test the pan. Notice how the sound moves depending on the colour (I apologize to the British people for ruining their flag)
Coagula in depth
I will now tell you about the menus, and what else you can do in this program.
Colors: In this menu you can invert, brighten or darken the image, and more.
Image: You can flip, mirror the image, double it, or make it half.
Filter: Add one of the filters that are included in the program, or use your own. In example 3 I used one of the filters of Coagula, making the image green and red.
Sound: You can render the whole image (or a part of it), with, or without the blue colours that produce noise.
Tools:
The Brush Dialog: Edit your brush for painting on the image to produce the desired sounds.
The Echord Dialog: It includes many options for adding echo to the whole image, or a selected part of it.
The Image Browser: It includes the filters of the program.
Render Options: Very important. You can change the duration, the pitch range, the amplification, and the sound quality. After choosing your preferences, render the image for the changes to take place.
After Coagula
Once you finish editing the image and you have your desired sound, it might be a good idea to further edit it with other programs like Cubase, or Logic. That way you will have more options for your sound, you can reduce the undesirable noise and add various filters.
For my piece, 'Sceneries', I used Adobe Audition. I reduced the noise using the FFT filter, by decreasing the volume of the lower frequencies. I was also able to add various other effects and filters.
Coagula is a great program for a beginner in composing electronic music, but it could be a powerful tool for an expert too. You can make a whole piece of music in one image, or make several images of short sounds, and put them in order using another program.
Alternative Programs
There are two more programs that have similar functionality, but they are not free. You can check them out. The first one is SonicPhoto and the second is Photosounder.
