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Making Up Instruments: Design Fiction for Value Discovery in Communities of Musical Practice

Published: 18 June 2019 Publication History

Abstract

The design of a new technology entails the materialisation of values emerging from the specific community, culture and context in which that technology is created. Within the domain of musical interaction, HCI research often examines new digital tools and technologies which can carry unstated cultural assumptions. This paper takes a step back to present a value discovery exercise exploring the breadth of perspectives different communities might have in relation to the values inscribed in fictional technologies for musical interaction. We conducted a hands-on activity in which musicians active in different contexts were invited to envision not-yet-existent musical instruments. The activity revealed several sources of influence on participants' artefacts, including cultural background, instrumental training, and prior experience with music technology. Our discussion highlights the importance of cultural awareness and value rationality for the design of interactive systems within and beyond the musical domain.

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      DIS '19: Proceedings of the 2019 on Designing Interactive Systems Conference
      June 2019
      1628 pages
      ISBN:9781450358507
      DOI:10.1145/3322276
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      Published: 18 June 2019

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      1. communities of practice
      2. design fiction
      3. musical instrument design
      4. non-functional prototyping
      5. value discovery

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