Allen County
Founder Profile
Kurt
Roembke
Business
SoundWalk
Founded
2017
Grant Date
July 2018
Idea
Turning physical locations into sonic environments to explore.
Bridging the gap between the audience that could be and the art they’re missing out on.
As a musician and a developer, this is Kurt Roembke’s goal.
Driven by this goal, Kurt has embarked on a multitude of business ventures that range from Space Owl! Productions – where he records audio and music for video games, short films, animations, and more – to SoundWalk – an app that guides users through an interactive audio experience at locations throughout Fort Wayne.
The essence of SoundWalk is simple: It gives people the opportunity to experience a physical location in a more meaningful way. A person could go sight-seeing at Friedmann Square pretty easily. With SoundWalk, their experience would be paired with a musical composition or a fictional narrative based on their movements through the location. This bridges the gap between technology and art.
SoundWalk is a fully-functioning app. Now, all it needs is more content. With support (and a micro-grant) from Fortitude Fund, Kurt’s next step is to secure audio content from local writers and musicians in Fort Wayne. Not only does this help move SoundWalk closer to release, but it also gives voice to local artists.
Kurt’s next SoundWalk experience is going to be an interactive, fictional narrative that follows users on a tour through Fort Wayne.
Business Updates
App ties sounds, historic locations
Making his way through Lindenwood Cemetery in November 2016, musician Kurt Roembke was inspired by the sites he saw.
In his mind, he was composing musical pieces that matched the scenery, and he wanted to create something that would pair the two together.
That’s when the creator of Space Owl! Productions thought of SoundWalk, an app using GPS to pair different locations with different audio sounds.
SOUP awards idea for cemetery walk
An idea for a free mobile app that marries location and music, Lindenwood Cemetery SoundWalk, has gotten a $1,272 boost from a new local crowdfunding initiative called SOUP.
Kurt Vernon Roembke pitched the idea to 145 people who attended the Socializing, Organizing, Uniting People event Thursday night at The Summit.
His idea won by two votes, said Andrew Gritzmaker, facilitator for the local SOUP board and executive director of Mad Anthonys Children’s Hope House.
Innovation Profile: SoundWalk offers site-specific augmented audio
Please share a little about the business behind your SoundWalk project – the Space Owl Productions company you founded for your freelance production work.
First Fort Wayne SOUP Winner Explains Soundwalk
With the next Fort Wayne SOUP (learn more) micro-grant dinner coming up this Thursday, I caught up with Soundwalk’s Kurt Roembke, the first micro-grant winner, to learn more about his creative project designed to enhance the Fort Wayne community by pairing locally composed sounds with local landscapes.
New App Turns Physical Locations Into Sonic Environments
Fort Wayne musician Kurt Roembke has added another dimension to his technological skill set and his composing capabilities with the development of a free mobile app that turns physical locations into sonic environments to explore.
