Embodied Tuning: Interfacing Danish Radio Heritage

Most museum exhibitions favor vision, not hearing. When there is audio in exhibitions it tends to take on a secondary role as soundtrack or commentary. In some cases however audio should be the primary object of interest. Radio heritage is such a case. The traditional way of showcasing audio is through web accessible archives or through listening kiosks in the exhibition. Neither one takes advantage of the unique affordances of the spatiality and physicality of an exhibition. We therefore propose an alternative way of exhibiting radio heritage in a listening exhibition where users move around and explore the physical gallery space.
We implemented a simple low-cost prototype system called Exaudimus allowing users to search for the audio streams using their own bodies as a metaphorical radio tuning dial.
We tested the concept in a public exhibition at the Media Museum in Denmark. A small qualitative user study conducted in the exhibition shows promise for this type of immersive experience. The users however tend to perceive it as a unique and finite experience, not motivating them to further explore radio heritage on their own afterwards.