21M.370 / 21M.570 Digital Instrument Design

Covers aesthetic and technical challenges in the creation of physical interfaces for musical performance. will engage in the design and creation of musical interfaces, and learn how to incorporate new technologies in their artistic practice. Topics covered include user experience design for artistic performance, musical human-computer interaction (HCI), hardware and software standards for digital musical systems, embedded programming and sound synthesis, analog and digital sensors, rapid prototyping and digital manufacturing, and creating performance practices around custom hardware. Students design and build their own digital musical instrument, and present a performance with the instrument as their final project.