MANTRA, 1990. 17 min., color, stereo. Available on VHS video as part of the collection Machina Mystica. Soundtrack available on the compact disc The Alchemist's Dream. AVI movie 900kb Streaming MP3 audio Play broadband Play 56k modem MANTRA is a visual and aural representation of the Great Mantra of Tibetan Buddhism, AUM MANI PADME HUM. It is divided into four segments, each corresponding to a word within the mantra. Although the mantra transcends translation, its meaning can be partly conveyed in the interpretation, "The universe in its undifferentiated state is a jewel resting in the lotus of my heart." This piece was created as my undergraduate thesis project at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. In MANTRA, I made extensive use of the Dan Sandin Image Processor, the first and most famous of the modular video synthesizers. To this day I have not found a more versatile tool for realtime generation and processing of video art. The soundtrack was created using my own harmonic chanting, an E-mu modular synthesizer, and Tibetan singing bowls. Originally recorded in quadrophonic sound, the music for MANTRA is now available in stereo on the compact disc The Alchemist's Dream.