AudioPaint application was designed to generate sounds from pictures.AudioPaint can read JPEG, GIF and BMP files and translates each pixel position and color into frequency, amplitude and pan information. AudioPaint can therefore be considered as a massive additive synthesis tool.

The picture corresponds to a big frequency / time grid. Each pixel of the picture is analyzed and drives an oscillator. The vertical position of the pixel determines its frequency, while its horizontal position corresponds to time. The color of the pixel is used to determine its pan.

By default, the red component controls the amplitude of the left channel, while the green component corresponds to the right channel (the brighter the colour, the louder the sound). By default, the blue component is not used, but the routing can be modified by the user.

The other parameters available are:
· waveform: the waveform used by the oscillators (can be a sine wave or any sample file)
· duration: the total duration of the sound to be generated.
· frequency scale: the scale (linear or exponential) used to determine the · · · · frequencies of the pixels.
· min frequency: the frequency of a pixel at the bottom of the picture.
· max frequency: the frequency of a pixel at the top of the picture.
· interpolation: the type of interpolation (none, linear or quadratic) used to go from the amplitude of a pixel to the amplitude of its neighbour.

Depending of the picture, several hundreds (even thousands) of oscillators can be generated simultaneously. Due to the large amount of data to process, AudioPaint is not real-time. Once you chose your picture and the parameters, you generate a sound. Then you can save it as a .WAV file for further processing in a sound editor such as Sound Forge / Wavelab etc.... or to import it as an audio track in a sequencer (Sonar, Acid etc...).

The sounds generated vary greatly depending on the type of pictures used. I tested AudioPaint with picture taken by the Hubble Space Telescope and available at the Hubble Heritage Gallery of Images. The results are complex and fascinating futuristic soundscapes, especially with long durations. Maps are also a good starting point for your sonic exploration, as well as paintings of Picasso, Monet and other great artists. And of course, don't hesitate to create pictures specially for AudioPaint, in PhotoShop or a similar graphic package. By playing with geometrical shapes and colors, you can create very interesting sounds.

What's New in This Release: [ read full changelog ]

· allows to enter the sound duration in BPM form
· allows to specify the min and max frequencies as musical notes
· displays scale file information
· added batch processor