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New High-Tech Musical Instruments
One of my (Roger) greatest interests is the current evolution of new musical instruments that take advantage of new technology. If I put on my idealist hat, I start thinking things like:
* Guitars are wonderful but they go out of tune, can't play chords and melody at the same time, can't play more than 6 notes at the same time, require two hands to make single notes, always produce a sharp-attack envelope, require 3 fingerings for each chord because of that pesky 3rd interval between the G and B strings, and the spaces between frets are big at one end and small at the other.
* Keyboards are wonderful but they require learning a different chord fingering for each of 12 keys, can't produce vibrato or other pitch nuances directly on the keys, can't vary the attack or decay time directly on the keys, and are long and heavy. Electronic keyboards attempt to overcome some of these limitations with transposition switches, pitch bend and modulation wheels, pitch strips, key pressure and more, but none of these enhancements have been useful enough to professionl players to properly overcome the basic limitations of the keyboard.
* Violin and other bowed instruments are great but can't play more than 2 notes at a time, are very difficult to learn to play in tune, have limited pitch range, and violins are (literally) a pain in the neck.
* Reed/wind instruments are great but they can't play more than one note at a time and require learning different scale fingerings for each of 12 keys.
* Computers are great for arranging loops and sequences (something I call Object Oriented Composition, or OOC) but require another musical input interface to input individual notes. Plus, who wants to sit at a typewriter and TV all alone to make music?
People have been coming up with new ways to improve musical instruments for just about forever, but what interests me personally are the new ideas that break entirely with existing mechanical interfaces in favor of high-tech sensor interfaces, and particularly ones that can produce--or at least attempt to attain--finely nuanced musical subtlety. I've compiled the following descriptions and links to some of the ones I find interesting--some shipping, some formerly shipping, some shipping in future and some unique ideas that may never ship. Click the links below to go to each product's site to learn more and see demonstration videos.
If you're aware of an interesting sensor-based music interface that I haven't listed here, please let me know about it at support@rogerlinndesign.com.
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The Reactable is an interactive, collaborative instrument using a multi-touch tabletop. Several performers sit around it placing on the tabletop a variety of physical objects of various shapes (representing synthesizer-style sound sources, filters and modulators) and the table senses them, projecting animations from under the table surface to indicate sound flow and other useful visual feedback. By rotating and moving the objects with their hands, the performers create and alter music in real time, guided by the visual and sound feedback. And Björk uses one in live performance. |
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The Yamaha Tenori-On is a hand-held instrument consisting of a matrix of 16 x 16 lit buttons that respond with musically-useful animations when pressed, guiding the performer to create and edit interesting note sequences in real time. |
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Similar to the Tenori-On, the Monome is a hand-held instrument consisting of a matrix of either 8 x 8 or 16 x 16 lit buttons that respond with musically-useful animations when pressed, guiding the performer to create and edit interesting note sequences in real time. |
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The Continuum keyboard from Haken Audio resembles a standard black-and-white music keyboard but the playing surface is a soft material (similar to a rubber mousepad) that permits you to continuously vary the pitch by moving your finger left and right. Further, it is polyphonic so each finger can be moved left or right to vary its note pitch. Even better, the volume or expression (or any assigned parameter) of each note is controlled by how hard you press. And even better, each finger can be moved front-to-back to control a further degree of expression, like filter frequency. |
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The Radio Baton from "Father of Computer Music" Max Mathews consists of a tabletop surface and two wireless batons similar to those used by an orchestral conductor. As the batons are moved over the tabletop surface, continuous MIDI messages are sent to indicate their left-right, up-down and front-back positions in 3D space, and these messages can be assigned to control any parameters in an external synthesizer or audio processor. Software is included that interprets the movements of the batons to vary tempo and dynamics of a sequenced musical score, similar to the gestures of an orchestral conductor. Here is a photo of Max Mathews with the Radio Baton. |
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The Lightning II Controller from Buchla & Associates is a unique product consisting of 2 handheld transmitters resembling small drumsticks plus a stand-mounted main console. When standing in front of the main console in performance, it senses the elevation and left-right position of each transmitter and sends this as MIDI data, or uses it to control an internal synthesizer. You can configure it so that movement in a user-defined x-y region sends a user-defined MIDI message. Further, the console senses velocity of movement and can be set to interpret fast movements (like a drum strike gesture) to send event messages (like MIDI Note On). A variation of the Lightning technology is incorporated into Buchla's 222e Multidimensional Kinesthetic Input Port module for the 200e Music Box. In this case, the position of 2 small finger rings is sensed while the performer plays a special control surface. (See next entry.)
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The 222e Multidimensional Kinesthetic Input Port module for the 200e Music Box by Buchla & Associates is a flat control surface consisting of 27 zones that sense the velocity and pressure of finger movements, and sends this data as control voltages to other modules in the 200e system. Fourteen of the sensors also sense location in either one or two dimensions.
This product also uses technolgy from the Buchla Lightning (see above) to sense the elevation and left-right position of 2 wireless finger-ring transmitters, altogether providing exceptional use of the performer's subtle hand and finger gestures for musical expression.
Also, check out Buchla's Marimba Lumina, a controller that resembles a marimba with a high degree of musical expression capabilities. |
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The Marimba Lumina by Buchla & Associates looks like a marimba but is much more. Each of the "bars" can sense the position and speed of movement of each of its 4 color-coded mallets. This provides a very wide range of possibilities for sound control in performance. In addition to sending MIDI messages, it has a built-in synthesizer. |
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The Thummer from ThumTronics is a small hand-held instrument with a novel key arrangement known as Wicki-Hayden with similarities to a button accordian in that the same chord & scale fingerings can be used for all musical keys by simply moving your hand to a different left-to-right or front-to-back position on the keyboard. For example, you only need to learn one fingering for a major chord, one for a minor chord, one for a diminished chord, etc. A big bonus is that the keys are independently velocity or pressure-sensitive and 2 thumb joysticks control pitch bend and modulation, or any other parameters you assign them to in the external synthesizer. The product actually includes 2 independent keyboards, one for the left and right hands, easily permitting different sounds from each hand. |
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Similar to the Thummer, the Axis keyboard from C-Thru Music is a novel keyboard design consisting of a matrix of hexagonal keys in a arrangement that permits that the same chord & scale fingerings to be used in any musical key by simply moving your hand to a different left-to-right or front-to-back position on the keyboard. Unlike the Thummer, the Axis is intended to be placed on a flat surface and the single key array played with both hands. |
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Similar to the Thummer and Axis, the Chomatone is a keyboard with a novel key arrangement that permits that the same chord & scale fingerings to be used in any musical key by simply moving your hand to a different left-to-right or front-to-back position on the keyboard. This key layout is known as the Janko Wholetone after its creator. Their site is in Japanese, but there's a site with some information in English here. |
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The ZBoard from Starr Labs is a unique keyboard containing keys arranged similar to a guitar fingerboard, with multiple rows of chromatic keys in intervals of fourths. Like the Thummer and Axis keyboards, this permits the same chord & scale fingerings to be used in any key by simply moving your hand left-to-right or front-to-back, but playing chromatics on this keyboard is easier because the next semitone key is always immediatley to your left or right, just like a guitar. Also, the similarity to the guitar fingerboard makes this more familiar to guitarists.
They also make a similar controller specifically for guitarists called the ZTar, with the buttons arranged as 6 "strings" of 23 "frets" each. Though it is normally set for guitar fingerings (all intervals between "strings" as fourths except for a third between the G and B "strings"), the interval between rows (strings) can be set to all fourths or whatever interval you choose.
Starr Labs also has a number of other innovative keyboard design on their site. |
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The Riday T-91 MIDI Controller is another novel keyboard design that that permits the same chord & scale fingerings to be used in any musical key by simply moving your hand to a different left-to-right or front-to-back position on the keyboard. |
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The Lemur from JazzMutant is multi-finger touch screen with a novel operating system that permits you to create your own custom control surface for audio, music or anything else by arranging little visual sliders, buttons, knobs and many other objects on the screen. Once you've designed your virtual control surface in this way, it can be operated by moving these visual objects on the screen with simultaneous multiple fingers. |
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The Yamaha Miburi is body suit that senses a variety of body movements and emits MIDI data in response to them. This MIDI data can be subsequently used to generate or modify sound or any other media.
Also, check out the Yamaha Design Site to see some of their exceptional MIDI controllers based on the violin, cello, guitar, drums, trumpet, reed instruments and marimba. |
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The Samchillian Tip Tip Tip Cheeepeeeee is a novel keyboard idea that uses keys relative pitch instead of absolute pitch as a conventional music keyboard does. You specify one of a number of scales, then hitting the +1 or -1 keys will move to the next higher or lower note in the scale. For example, if you specify a major scale, then repeatedly pressing the +1 key will play C, D, E, F, G, etc., and repeatedly pressing the +2 key will play C, E, G, B, etc. It sounds difficult but listen to this fast solo recording that was performed in real time on the device. Here's a picture of the intended final product and here's a picture of the current prototype. |
Here are some interesting resources for those interested in alternate interfaces for music:
The Create Digital Music web site, a great webzine with daily postings on new music software & hardware, rumors, product development, DIY, events, people, and just about everything digital music with a refreshing bias toward new & interesting ideas. It's intelligent, well-writtten, graphically interesting, well-researched, not dumb and not at all snobby. I find myself checking in more and more frequently.
The web site for New Interfaces for Musical Expression (NIME), an annual conference on alternate music interfaces.
The home page for Bill Buxton, one of the world leaders in the field of human-computer interface, with lots of technical information.
Bark Hopkin’s Experimental Musical Instruments site, containing lots of information on odd and unique acoustic or electrified acoustic instruments.
John Pascuzzi's Oddmusic.com site is a wonderful online museum of creative, unique and odd musical instruments from around the world, primarily mechanical inventions. |
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