The creation of a new audio-visual gestural instrument

This practice-based research involves further development of the AirSticks, a hardware/software package which allows the triggering and manipulation of sound and visuals in a 3D playing space, as a gestural instrument for live electronic music performance, music education and general health and wellbeing in collaboration with our interdisciplinary team at SensiLab. This can be done through new performances, new software or new hardware. How can we reinvent the connect between our bodies, our ears and our creativity, and what new applications for the AirSticks can be discovered?

Recent developments in music technology have allowed us to remap the connection between our bodies and sound. Though music and movement have always been intrinsically linked, the rise of the laptop DJ broke that nexus. At worst, stagecraft has recently been reduced to little more than email checking performances. The idea behind this research is to reconnect music and movement, combining the physicality of acoustic performance with the endless possibilities of digital sound, allowing the plucking of sounds out of thin air.

URLs and Further Reading
https://airsticks.xyz/

Ilsar, A.A., 2018. The AirSticks: a new instrument for live electronic percussion within an ensemble (Doctoral dissertation).