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A zero-vision music recording paradigm for visually impaired people

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Abstract

At first glance, making electronic music seems to be a domain which is also well suited for people with limited eye-sight. However, a closer analysis reveals that standard software and hardware are both strongly dominated by graphical output. In order to close this gap for visually impaired musicians, we developed a MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) sequencer with audio-feedback and a new interaction paradigm which eliminates interaction with the PC’s keyboard and screen. The blind musician relies solely on input via the instrument itself. He can both, record and play music via the claviature’s black & white keys but at the same time control all functions of a multi-track MIDI sequencer without ever taking the hands off the instrument. We also use the MIDI-connection for coding different kinds of feedback to the user in an efficient way. The software which runs on a PC that is connected to an electronic instrument has been evaluated and improved extensively.

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Notes

  1. Founder of SAP.

  2. http://www.informatik.uni-mannheim.de/pi4/ projects/cuse/index_en.html

  3. http://members.optusnet.com.au/~terryk/toccata.htm

  4. http://www.dancingdots.com

  5. http://www.visiv.co.uk/

  6. http://mielke.cc/brltty/

  7. Schlossschule Ilvesheim, Germany.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Mannheim, A5(6), 68159, Mannheim, Germany

    Thomas Haenselmann, Hendrik Lemelson & Wolfgang Effelsberg

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  1. Thomas Haenselmann
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  2. Hendrik Lemelson
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  3. Wolfgang Effelsberg
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Correspondence to Thomas Haenselmann.

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Haenselmann, T., Lemelson, H. & Effelsberg, W. A zero-vision music recording paradigm for visually impaired people. Multimed Tools Appl 60, 589–607 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11042-011-0832-z

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