Musical signals from Chua's circuit

Chua's circuit can produce a very rich variety of signals that are both periodic and chaotic. The authors explore some classes of these attractors with respect to their auditory display and musical properties. They discuss the fast control of the circuit through a specially developed computer-controlled electronic resistor and how chaotic control methods might be applied to optimally switch between different attractors. The Chua circuit has parameter regions where noisy frequency and amplitude modulated sounds are generated, each of which is related to a certain transition to chaos. The authors discovered a period-adding sequence of bassoon-like sounds that produces interesting almost harmonic pitch changes. Finally, they emphasize the importance of transient dynamics especially in the context of percussion-like sounds. >