Sho-Zyg takes its name and inspiration from the Shozyg, a performance and improvisational instrument, first created by British composer Hugh Davies in 1968. It consists of fretsaw blades, springs, and a ball-bearing, mounted inside an encyclopaedia volume. The heading on the spine of the first iteration of this instrument, SHO-ZYG, from Shoal to Zygote, bequeathed the instrument its name.

'Shozyg I' by Hugh Davies | Photograph: Settimio Fiorenzo Palermo