What do you get when a bunch of roboticists combine a theremin with the bagpipes, add some blinkinlights, throw in a dab of shark (or rocket) inspired design, and make a music video?
The Thereping, of course!
Created by members of the Austin Robotics Group, the Thereping is worn like a guitar and played like a theremin. An ultrasonic sensor provides the basis for space control, and a "thereclock" serves as a central sync device for multiple Therepings. A droning feature lets a performer drop into the mix while trading solos with other Therepingists during a performance. This thing is creative to say the least!
Interested in learning more? Visit the Thereping Yahoo! group for discussions, schematics, a copy of a recent Nuts and Volts magazine article with more details.
You can see the Thereping in action in this rehearsal video as well as this video shot by Geek Entertainment Television at South by Southwest's EFF/Creative Commons party this year.
Link: Thereping.com
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The folks were having a lot of fun and I am sure I would have enjoyed being there.
I think the Thereping needs... well... a little more refinement before it becomes the final word in sensitive music-making. :)
A complete article on their creation was published in Nuts and Volts magazine (http://www.nutsvolts...) in the April issue. You can read a PDF of the article at this link:
http://www.thereping... (http://www.thereping.com/april2006nutsvolts.pdf)
Also, there is now a yahoo! group (http://launch.groups...) for the thereping where some folks have built their own thereping units and modified them to be used as MIDI controllers. I think the main reason the videos looked "canned" is that every instrument uses the same sound generator so the music tends to "overlap". One of the plans for these instruments is to modify the program loaded in each instrument to create distinct musical ranges (i.e. Bass, Tenor, Alto etc.) so their sounds can more easily be distinguished when played together.
As the author of the article on the creation of the thereping, I'm happy to answer any questions you may have about them. :)
Vern
[i]>>Oscar: Is this any sort of Geek Joke? Or am I the only one who thinks they're playing nothing?[/i]
Nope, not a geek joke. :) The Thereping is, by design, meant to be playable by non-musicians. The folks you're observing in the videos are not musicians, but rather average folks plucked from the audience to assist in creating this interactive artistic spectacle. Their right-hand motions are being sensed by the sonar unit, interpreted into tones and then quantized by the "thereclock" to play in sync with everyone else. They are definitely creating the... umm.. "music" you're hearing! :)
[i]>>Jeffs: I'm inclined to agree with you Oscar. The videos are certainly not a very good demonstration of the "instrument". There seems to be no connection to what we are seeing and to the noise we are hearing. The acting like they're swept up in their own "musical" performance is laughable as well.[/i]
The videos really don't do the project justice. It is hard to understand how the Thereping works until you've played one yourself. Of course, it helps to read the article (http://www.thereping...). :) The Thereping was not designed to be a new "musical instrument" per se, it was designed to allow non-musicians to create a musical sound by limiting what traditionally can go "wrong" when playing music (i.e. playing the wrong pitch note, or playing a note at the wrong time). This is detailed in the article. As for the folks being swept up in their performances, well there *was* some drinking at that party and frankly many of the folks felt like "showing off" for their friends and were getting into the mood of the party, which was quite bizarre. All of us were having fun and I think it shows. :)
[i]>>kkissinger:Well, I watched the video again. The video reminds me of going to Chucky Cheese's and watching the mechanized creatures on stage while the music plays (except for the drummer who's actions and resulting music seemed to match up). Of course, this IS a robot club and perhaps the performers were purposely acting like robot performers. The folks were having a lot of fun and I am sure I would have enjoyed being there. I think the Thereping needs... well... a little more refinement before it becomes the final word in sensitive music-making. :)[/i]
Well as the drummer in both those clips, I'm happy that at least I appeared to be in sync. :) The "performers" were just regular folks from the crowd, trying to look cool while feeling silly, so their actions reflected that. As for refinement, <diety> yes! We'd love to continue to work on the software to create a more versatile device. So far we have one person who has modded the code to create a MIDI controller. He has added buttons and made the device more of an instrument, while at the same time possibly making it more difficult to "play".. but I haven't run his code so I can't say for sure. We are very happy to have anyone build and experiment with the design, this is why all the schematics and source code are published on the site (http://www.thereping...). Come help us refine it! :)
Vern
One possibility is that each musician can play in different levels from "novice" to "expert" -- expert being designed for a musician that knows how to improvise, etc... novice for someone who knows nothing about music... and a few levels in between.
The Thereping opens up some possibilities... for example, I play Theremin with backing tracks. If I had a Thereping, volunteers from the audience could provide the accompianment.
In other words, it could be developed into a technology that allows non-musicians, novices, and experienced musicians to make music together.
Keep us posted. :)
I've always been fascinated by the idea of "idiot-proof" instruments that would allow non-musicians to make music.
The traditional mountain dulcimer is a step in that direction. It's like a guitar with some frets removed, making it almost impossible to produce a wrong note.