Critical Evaluation

At first I found it extremely hard to generate an idea for the project. After learning the basics of Max/MSP I was blinded by so many possible project ideas. Because of this I thought about creating something that was more personal to me. As I only started to get involved with music in recent years, I can remember and appreciate how much of a struggle it can be to create music that sounds reasonably good when you’re just starting. One of the main hurdles for me was my lack of knowledge concerning music theory. Therefore I decided to create a device to help individuals express themselves musically without needing any pre-existing skills. By limiting the user to a set key signature there is less room for error, enabling them to compose simple melodies without trouble. Coupled with a basic chord progression, this would be enough to inspire children and introduce them to the world of music.

My core aims were to create a pair of gloves that send pressure data from each finger to trigger notes in a specific key. Ideally the user should be able to control how sensitive the gloves are to pressure. I wanted at least three chords to be available for the user to trigger and finally the MIDI needed be to easily rout into any DAW.  These aims confirm the usability of the gloves but also ensure they are a suitable tool for any potential user. I was inspired by Imogen Heap’s glove project, which enables her to perform and change her music live on stage (Collins, 2014). However I wanted to move away from this concept as I feel there are already tools available to enhance musical performance and less to aid the composition process. Therefore, although being inspired by her glove interface, I decided to focus my gloves around composition rather than performance. One important aspect of the project, was selecting the right technologies and tools for the job. For example, after some research I found that piezoelectric sensors were the best choice for my main inputs due to being cheap, yet robust (Gautschi, 2002). Previous lectures also helped me identify the uses of an Arduino board and how I may be able to use it to relay the pressure data into Max. However after studying the Arduino Uno in the lecture, I noticed that it didn’t have ten analog inputs. This resulted in further research into different boards. I identified the ‘Leonardo’ as being the cheapest board with over ten analog ports, however as I was unsure how far my project would develop, I purchased the Arduino Mega as it has far more ports than necessary, allowing further developments in the future.

My first problem was my prototype. I was able to create a knock sensor fairly easily, but relaying pressure data into max was more difficult. After further research however, I found two possible Max templates that would read the analog inputs from my Arduino. ‘Maxuino’ was the first, but it didn’t seem to work and appeared to be glitchy. ‘Arduino2Max’ however managed to read six of my inputs. After altering the Arduino code, I was able to read all ten inputs and complete my prototype without any further problems. One of the main problems during the project was creating a way to control the sensitivity of the sensors. Initially I tried to use a basic ‘if’ statement to filter out the softer touches but I had used the wrong syntax. This resulted in the use of the ‘onebang’ object, which allowed only the first touch to be triggered. However this alone didn’t give the user full control of the sensitivity. Therefore I was forced to reevaluate my initial syntax until a working if statement had been created. Another problem I had was create selectable chords. Although I was able to create three preset chords, I was limited to one octave and therefore had to resort to using inversions. After refining my Max patch, I was able to solve this by creating a separate section that is one octave higher. Further research into the ‘gate’ and ‘umenu’ objects helped me to create a list of chords for the user to pick from.

There are several limitations to the gloves. For example there are only three chords available to the user, which is less appealing as four chords in a progression is more common.  The use is also limited to only one octave. This could be overcome by the addition of extra piezo sensors however. Complex chords are also not available to the user however this is less of a problem, as the target users are not experienced musically. Finally, when recording into a DAW, there is no way to change the note length without having to manually adjust them with a mouse. I did find a work around for this problem, as a sustain pedal can be used depending on the sound the user has chosen to play. Several of the limitations could easily be overcome if I were to create a whole new instrument instead of using a glove interface. However, as children and disabled individuals are the target audience, the gloves allow the user to create music using an interface they are already familiar with without having to worry about learning something completely new. This means the gloves may also be appropriate for users with visual impairment as the instrument is literally an extension of their own body. It is for these reasons I decided to stay with the glove interface, regardless of the limitations they present.

As I one of my main aims is to make the gloves appropriate for any user, I began researching how the gloves may help the disabled or handicapped.  One of the main areas I explored was the effect of music on autistic individuals. Music can be used as a tool to “release them from their autistic chains” (Salter, 2013). This may suggest that my gloves project could be used to help autistic children express themselves and interact with others musically. Also it is suggested that autistic individuals are more responsive to simple musical phrases and melodies which are exactly what my gloves are designed to make (Kalas, 2012, pp. 430--452). Finally it can be argued that autistic children have a “strong and early preference for music and are able to understand simple and complex musical emotions” (Molnar-Szakacs and Heaton, 2012, pp. 318--324). Once again this supports the notion that the gloves may be a useful application to be used in music therapy. This also made me consider the possible uses for patients in hospital who cannot speak and how the gloves could be used to trigger statements or answers. Although this was not the main aim of the project, I feel that there are plenty of areas other than composition where the gloves may be of use.

One aspect of the project that I failed to mention in the presentation was the GUI (Graphical User Interface). This took many forms throughout the project as new functions kept being developed. It was imperative that all of the main options concerning the patch were available on the main interface. I have limited the colour scheme and kept the general design extremely simple. The use of dropdown menus makes all the parameters easily changeable and improves the overall usability of the gloves. Also clear labeling and separation of the main functions allows the user to find the parameter they want to change quickly and efficiently. Finally I feel that I improved the clarity of the GUI by creating spaces between the options. Spaces are very important when considering the overall clarity of a user GUI (Nielsen, 1997). Therefore I was sure to keep everything well spaced out.

In conclusion I feel that I have met all of the core aims that I made when first starting the project. I feel that this project is only the tip of the iceberg and the project could be expanded much further in many different ways. The project has helped build my understanding of Max/MSP and technology such as Arduino boards and basic electronics. I would have liked to look further into wireless technologies as I feel the wires are not aesthetically pleasing, however I am thrilled at the overall functionality of the gloves and genuinely feel like I have created a useable, efficient tool for any individual to enjoy. 

Bibliography

Collins, K. 2014. Imogen Heap's music-manipulating gloves on Kickstarter (Wired UK). [online] Available at: http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2014-03/24/imogen-heap-glove-kickstarter.

Gautschi, G. 2002. Piezoelectric sensorics. Berlin: Springer.

Kalas, A. 2012. Joint attention responses of children with autism spectrum disorder to simple versus complex music. Journal of music therapy, 49 (4), pp. 430--452.

Molnar-Szakacs, I. and Heaton, P. 2012. Music: a unique window into the world of autism. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1252 (1), pp. 318--324.

Nielsen, J. 1997. The Difference Between Web Design and GUI Design. [online] Available at: http://www.nngroup.com/articles/the-difference-between-web-design-and-gui-design/.

Salter, J. 2013. 'Music releases autistic children from their chains' - Telegraph. [online] Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/10046513/Music-releases-autistic-children-from-their-chains.html.