Holly Herndon reveals how Conrad Shawcross’ dancing robot inspired her new track ‘Relations’

Producer tells of her involvement with the Ada Project during recent RBMA Lecture.

After three incredible weeks spent dancing at The Vinyl Factory’s Brewer Street Car Park space, Conrad Shawcross’ Ada Project robot came to rest this evening. Choreographed to ratios noted by prodigious Victorian mathematician Ada Lovelace, Ada, as the robot has been called, was employed to inspire four female producers and musicians, each of whom composed a track that responds to the robots specific movements.

One of those producers was Holly Herndon, whose quiet and moving piece sampled sounds made by the robot to reflect the growing confidence of its movements, as it noses around its immediate environs with increasing assurance. Invited for an RBMA lecture in Tokyo earlier this month, Herndon discussed what it was like to compose a piece with just the robot for company, even falling for its alarmingly human characteristics by referring to it as ‘her’ throughout.

Skip to 46 minutes to hear Holly Herndon on The Ada Project:

You can now also buy Holly Herndon’s ‘Relations’ as a limited edition etched 12″, signed by Conrad Shawcross, and as a standard 12″ edition by visiting our online shop.