Smart Musical Instruments: Vision, Design Principles, and Future Directions

Abstract

Smart musical instruments (SMIs) are a family of Internet of Musical Things devices for music creation. They are characterized by sensors, actuators, embedded intelligence, and wireless connectivity to local networks and to the Internet. In this paper, we depict a vision for this recent research area, which merges the research fields on digital musical instruments and smart objects, and fosters new types of interactions between the player and the instrument, between the player and other players, and between the player and audience members. We propose a set of capabilities and technical features characterizing SMIs, as well as a design for a technological architecture supporting them. To illustrate possible applications enabled by this vision, we present a set of scenarios exploiting the intelligence embedded in SMIs. We also propose a set of guidelines that can help digital luthiers in the process of designing SMIs. Finally, we present a set of directions for future research.