Peter Nyboer

Peter Nyboer’s journey through music has tracked a certain technological vein. Born in the same town as the Fender guitar he grew up with, he wandered into the experimental landscape of electronics and home computers at UC Santa Cruz, under the tutelage of Peter Elsea. Influenced by the “connect everything” philosophy of the software Max (then Opcode, now Cycling 74) he became more interested in the broader application of ‘digital media.’ He was able to examine these possibilities at Naut Humon’s compound in the late nineties, combining a multi-screen real-time video sampling system that worked in concert with the 16 channel surround system, ultimately used at the millennium-ending 9 hour, 99 minute music festival on Sept 9, 1999 at Ars Electronica. Helping found Livid Instruments with Jay Smith and Travis Redding, they launched the company with video performance hardware and software, applying MIDI as a "media instrument” rather than “musical instrument.” Eventually expanding into music, their products provided flexible controls for any number of creative technologies, with music as a main application. The idea of media-agnostic controllers for creative expression in the networked digital age established a product design principle that has informed a career that has included embedded computing with Next Thing Co, expressive pressure sensitive controllers with Sensel, and new designs that help build on the unique legacy at Buchla.