What does not happen: quantifying embodied engagement using NIMI and self-adaptors

Previous research into the quantification of embodied intellectual and emotional engagement using non-verbal movement parameters has not yielded consistent results across different studies. Our research introduces NIMI (Non-Instrumental Movement Inhibition) as an alternative parameter. We propose that the absence of certain types of possible movements can be a more holistic proxy for cognitive engagement with media (in seated persons) than searching for the presence of other movements. Rather than analyzing total movement as an indicator of engagement, our research team distinguishes between instrumental movements (i.e. physical movement serving a direct purpose in the given situation) and non-instrumental movements, and investigates them in the context of the narrative rhythm of the stimulus. We demonstrate that NIMI occurs by showing viewers’ movement levels entrained (i.e. synchronised) to the repeating narrative rhythm of a timed computer-presented quiz. Finally, we discuss the role of objective metrics of engagement in future context-aware analysis of human behaviour in audience research, interactive media and responsive system and interface design

The Intersection of Art and Technology

As art influences science and technology, science and technology can in turn inspire art. Recognizing this mutually beneficial relationship, researchers at the Casa Paganini-InfoMus Research Centre work to combine scientific research in information and communications technology (ICT) with artistic and humanistic research. Here, the authors discuss some of their work, showing how their collaboration with artists informed work on analyzing nonverbal expressive and social behavior and contributed to tools, such as the EyesWeb XMI hardware and software platform, that support both artistic and scientific developments. They also sketch out how art-informed multimedia and multimodal technologies find application beyond the arts, in areas including education, cultural heritage, social inclusion, therapy, rehabilitation, and wellness

Annual Report Of Research and Creative Productions by Faculty and Staff from January to December, 2005.

Annual Report Of Research and Creative Productions by Faculty and Staff from January to December, 2005

Music conducting pedagogy and technology : a document analysis on best practices

This document analysis was designed to investigate pedagogical practices of music conducting teachers in conjunction with research of technologists on the use of various technologies as teaching tools. I sought to discern how conducting teachers and pedagogues are applying recent technological advancements into their teaching strategies. I also sought to understand what paths research is taking about the use of software, hardware, and computer systems applied to the teaching of music conducting technique. This dissertation was guided by four main research questions: (1) How has technology been used to aid in the teaching of conducting? (2) What is the role of technology in the context of conducting pedagogy? (3) Given that conducting is a performative act, how can it be developed through technological means? (4) What technological possibilities exist in the teaching of music conducting technique? Data were collected through music conducting syllabi, conducting textbooks, and research articles. Documents were selected through purposive sampling procedures. Analysis of documents through the constant comparative approach identified emerging themes and differences across the three types of documents. Based on a synthesis of information, I discussed implications for conducting pedagogy and made suggestions for conducting educators.Includes bibliographical references

Conductor Follower: Controlling sample-based synthesis with expressive gestural input

Vuosien mittaan on kehitetty useita järjestelmiä, jotka seuraavat kapellimestarin liikkeitä, ja soittavat musiikkia keräämänsä tiedon perusteella. Koska orkesterinjohto on pohjimmiltaan kommunikaatiota kapellimestarin ja muusikkojen välillä - sisältäen muutakin kuin eleiden kautta kommunikointia - on selvää, että ongelman täydellinen hallinta on hyvin monimutkaista. Tietokonepeliteollisuuden viimeaikaisen kehityksen myötä kuluttajatason liikesensoreita on helposti saatavilla, ja niille on helppo kehittää ohjelmistoja. Siksi ne ovat hyvin varteenotettava vaihtoehto kapellimestariseuraajan syötteen tuottamiseksi. Tässä tutkimuksessa suunniteltiin ja toteutettiin kyseisenlaista liikesensoria, sekä korkealaatuista sample -pohjaista syntetisaattoria käyttävä kapellimestariseuraaja. Nämä komponentit antavat hyvän perustan luonnolliselle käyttäjäkokemukselle, eikä niitä ole aikaisemmin käytetty vastaavanlaisissa sovelluksissa. Työn tulos on VST-liitännäinen, joka käyttää MIDI-tiedostoja syötteenään. Oikeilla asetuksilla liitännäistä on mahdollista käyttää lähes minkä tahansa samplepohjaisen syntetisaattorin kanssa. Järjestelmän toimintaa arvioitiin ammattikapellimestarin avustuksella, ja vaikka järjestelmän ekspressiiviset ominaisuudet ovat jokseenkin rajoittuneet, sopivilla asetuksilla sen temponseuraamisominaisuuksien todettiin muistuttavan oikeaa orkesteria.Over the years, several systems that follow conductor movement and play back a score accordingly have been implemented. Since conducting is essentially communication between the conductor and the musicians - including more than only gestural communication - it is clear that the problem is very complex to master completely. Recent developments in the computer gaming industry have made consumer grade motion sensing devices commonly available and easy to use in software development, making such a device an intriguing choice for using as the input of a conductor follower system. A system using such a device together with a high quality sample based synthesis engine was designed and implemented. These building blocks provide a solid foundation for a natural user experience, and have not been previously used in a similar way. The result is a VST plugin which uses MIDI scores as input, and may be configured to work with any sample based synthesis engine supporting patch switching via keyswitch events. The system was evaluated by a professional conductor, and while the expressive features of the system are somewhat limited, the tempo following functionality was concluded to resemble a real orchestra when adjusted correctly

WOMEN CONDUCTORS: A QUALITATIVE STUDY OF GENDER, FAMILY, ‘THE BODY’ AND DISCRIMINATION

The purpose of this study is to develop a broader appreciation of women’s experiences of conducting, focusing on issues concerning embodiment, body language, clothing and so forth in order to place emphasis on their life experiences. The research is based upon thematic analysis (TA) of qualitative interviews conducted with women conductors living in the UK (N=8) alongside detailed Media Content Analysis (MCA) of data derived from online magazines, online newspapers, online blogs and Internet articles. The results reveal prevalent gender discrimination, bias, sexism and misogyny against women in the conducting profession. Specifically, six broad themes emerged through the data analysis. These are: 1) gender discrimination (TA and MCA suggest that gender bias, discrimination, sexist and misogynist comments and attitudes still occur within the conducting profession); 2) factors that influence women conductors’ career development (TA suggests that families as well as a musical background of women conductors have motivated them to pursue and develop a musical career); 3) achieving balance (TA and MCA support that a balance between professional and personal life can be difficult to achieve); 4) clothing (TA and MCA suggest that clothing choices are very important for women conductors, affecting them personally in terms of how they are perceived by other musicians and/or audiences); 5) the conducting body (TA and MCA conclude that gender is not a factor affecting women’s bodily communication; however, their gestures may be perceived differently by people); and 6) conducting and leadership (TA and MCA suggest that the concept of the male ‘tradition’ is the main factor that has prevented women conductors from being seen as great leaders, therefore, women lack the experience and practice to develop their leadership abilities). Taken together, these factors highlight the continuing struggle that women experience in conducting today and provide an insight of how they cope with their profession

Interfaces avanzados aplicados a la interacción musical

The latest advances in human-computer interaction technologies have brought forth changes in the way we interact with computing devices of any kind, from the standard desktop computer to the more recent smartphones. The development of these technologies has thus introduced new interaction metaphors that provide more enriching experiences for a wide range of different applications. Music is one of most ancient forms of art and entertainment that can be found in our legacy, and conforms a strong interactive experience on itself. The application of new technologies to enhance music computer-based interaction paradigms can potentially provide all sorts of improvements: providing low-cost access to music rehearsal, lowering knowledge barriers in regard to music learning, virtual instrument simulation, etc. Yet, surprisingly, there has been rather limited research on the application of new interaction models and technologies to the specific field of music interaction in regard to other areas. This thesis aims to address the aforementioned need by presenting a set of studies which cover the use of innovative interaction models for music-based applications, from interaction paradigms for music learning to more entertainment-oriented interaction interfaces, such as virtual musical instruments, ensemble conductor simulation, etc. The main contributions of this thesis are: · It is shown that the use of signal processing techniques on the music signal and music information retrieval techniques can create enticing interfaces for music learning. Concretely, the research conducted includes the implementation and experimental evaluation of a set of different learning-oriented applications which make use of these techniques to implement inexpensive, easy-to-use human-computer interfaces, which serve as support tools in music learning processes. · This thesis explores the use of tracking systems and machine learning techniques to achieve more sophisticated interfaces for innovative music interaction paradigms. Concretely, the studies conducted have shown that it is indeed feasible to emulate the functionally of musical instruments such as the drumkit or the theremin. In a similar way, it is shown that more complex musical roles can also be recreated through the use of new interaction models, such as the case of the ensemble conductor or a step-aerobics application. · The benefits in using advanced human-computer interfaces in musical experiences are review and assessed through experimental evaluation. It is shown that the addition of these interfaces contributes positively to user perception, providing more satisfying and enriching experiences overall. · The thesis also illustrates that the use of machine learning algoriths and signal processing along with new interaction devices provides an effective framework for human gesture recognition and prediction, and even mood estimation

Toward an understanding of musical gesture : mapping expressive intention with the digital baton

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Program in Media Arts & Sciences, 1996.Includes bibliographical references (p. 131-136).Teresa Anne Marrin.M.S

The effect of practice with the Beatnik Rhythmic Analyzer on rhythm accuracy of non-percussion undergraduate music majors.

The purpose of this study was to measure the effectiveness of the Beatnik Rhythmic Analyzer on rhythmic accuracy. Non-percussion music majors ( N =19) were randomly divided to practice with either the Beatnik Rhythmic Analyzer ( n =9) or a metronome ( n =10). Five exercises were administered for one minute each over a three-week period. Pre- posttest scores were analyzed using a Mann-Whitney U to test for differences between the groups. While the mean posttest scores of the treatment group were higher than the control group, results indicated no significant difference between the groups (a=.05). Lastly, two out of the five exercises resulted in large effect sizes in favor of the treatment group, suggesting that the Beatnik Rhythmic Analyzer is highly effective for developing specific fundamental techniques in snare drum playing

The effects of nonverbal behaviors exhibited by multiple conductors on the timbre, intonation, and perceptions of three university choirs, and assessed relationships between time spent in selected conductor behaviors and analysis of the choirs' performances

This investigation examined the effects of aggregate nonverbal behaviors exhibited by 10 videotaped conductors on the choral sound and perceptions of 3 university choirs (N = 61 choristers) as they sang from memory the same a cappella motet. It then assessed relationships between time spent in selected nonverbal conducting behaviors and the choirs' sung performances and perceptions. Examined nonverbal conductor behaviors were: (a) height of vertical gestural plane; (b) width of lateral gestural plane; (c) hand shape; and (d) emotional face expression. Dependent measures included Long Term Average Spectra (LTAS) data, pitch analyses, and singer questionnaires. Among primary findings: (a) aggregate singer ratings yielded significant differences among the 10 conductors with respect to perceived gestural clarity and singing efficiency; (b) each of the 3 choirs responded similarly in timbre and pitch to the 10, counter-balanced conductor videos presented; (c) significantly strong, positive correlations between LTAS and pitch results suggested that those conductors whose nonverbal behaviors evoked more spectral energy in the choirs' sound tended also to elicit more in tune singing; (d) the 10 conductors exhibited significantly different amounts of aggregate time spent in the gestural planes and hand shapes analyzed; (e) above shoulder vertical gestures related significantly to less timbral energy, while gestures below shoulder level related significantly to increased timbral energy; (f) significantly strong, positive correlations between singer questionnaire responses and both pitch and LTAS data suggested that the choirs' timbre and pitch tended to vary according to whether or not the singers perceived a conductor's nonverbal communication as clear and whether or not they perceived they sang efficiently while following a particular conductor; (g) moderately strong, though not significant, associations between lateral gestures within the torso area and both pitch (more in tune) and timbre (more spectral energy), and between lateral gestures beyond the torso area and both pitch (less in tune) and timbre (less spectral energy); and (h) weak, non-significant correlations between aggregate time spent in various hand postures and the choirs' timbre and intonation, and between identified emotional face expressions and analyses of the choirs' sound