james@itp

Home ť New Interfaces for Musical Expression ť Initial Brainstorming

	Initial Brainstorming First Instrument Ideas February 5, 2003

Development of Ideas: 1. Musical Juggling ť 2. Digital Dreidels ť 3. Percussive-Melodic Combination Idea #1: Musical Juggling Concept: Embed a gyro-tracking system and a wireless broadcasting chip in a ball, so that different sounds could be created by tracking x, y, and z values as a ball is tossed through the air. Speed could translate to tempo. Multiple balls could be juggled to create chords and arpeggios. Problems: Wireless technologies (RF and Bluetooth) difficult to implement. Also tricky to track each ball's trajectory/telemetry. Each problem violates James' first rule of Physical Computing projects: "Keep It Simple". Balls will be fragile. Mapping sounds to motion not very intutive. Idea #2: Digital Dreidels Concept: A small battery is embedded in a dreidel with an electrode replacing the tip. The dreidel is then spun on a special table lined with different metal strips, each representing a different tone, each wired to a single chip that reports completed circuits to Max/MSP. Multiple dreidels could be spun at the same time to create harmonies; two could be spun on a single strip and increased voltage could be reported to set a different timbre. Problems: Dreidels hard to control and run out of gas at odd times. Very hard to create music more interesting than random sounds. Kitschy. Idea #3: Percussive-Melodic Combination Concept: Similar to previous idea, but with an easier electrified interface. A group of metal panels/strings are both wired into a circuit and miked with a pickup in order to create both melodic and percussive sounds. Panels -- naturally percussive -- could then be mapped to melodic elements, while strings -- naturally melodic -- could be mapped to percussive elements. Electrified mallets or picks could be used; ideally, something that has elements of both. Problems: No physical form as yet. At the moment, it sounds like it might turn out to be a cross between a harp and a steel drum. Possible metal plate interface Possible metal string interface Possible combined interface Other possible arrays