Beating Like A Drum
Teenage Engineering’s CHD-4 Heartbeat Drum Machine.
10 October 2022
Congenital heart disease is one of the most common birth defects in the world, affecting the way the heart works and thus that child’s quality and length of life. Despite its prevalence, awareness of the disease is low. The CHD-4 is a drum machine created by Love Hultèn to raise awareness for the disease. Using Teenage Engineering’s POM modules, it produces rhythms made using the echocardiograms of four children with different heart defects.
Each child’s ECG scan revealed the shape, pace, and BPM of their heartbeats. These patterns were then transferred to the sequencer, to be played together or separately, creating unique sounds that exemplify the irregular heartbeat of each child. “Drum machines are defined by order — beats, pace, and rhythm. This machine disrupts that system, the same way life is disrupted when a child is born with congenital heart disease,” explained Love Hultèn.
CHD-4 was unveiled on World Heart Day (September 29) and it will visit different creators and artists throughout the following few months. On Valentine’s Day 2023, CHD-4 will be auctioned off with all proceeds donated to Hjärtebarnsfonden (Swedish Heartchild Foundation).
RESPONSES