[Imogen Heap] is a UK-based musician who is trying to change the way we think about making music. She’s been working on a pair of gloves called the Mi.Mu, and they’re getting close to production.
In the included interview she explains that while computers and technology have brought many new advances to music, twiddling dials and pushing random buttons “is not very exciting for me, or the audience”. With these gloves, the artist becomes one with the music and interaction.
The current iteration of gloves use flex sensors along each finger to determine the movement (along with motion sensors for other gestures). She’s been through many designs and hopes to integrate e-materials into the next — using the actual glove as the sensor (not physical flex sensors).
She’s been working with both developers and musicians mapping the various motions of the gloves to music which makes sense in an intuitive way, and it’s very unique to see in action.
[Imogen Heap] was also on Letterman a few years ago! For more information about the Mi.Mu gloves, she has a website under construction, but offers an email signup mailing list.
[Thanks Aaron!]
Wow! That is pretty awesome. I love it! Go imogen heap!
Wow compaired to little boxes. Combine with Kinect for more. A major artist on HaD!
Plusea (who’s projects have popped up on hackaday before), had worked on these gloves,
http://www.plusea.at/?p=2388
Also there’s a link on how to make more recent version on your own
http://theglovesproject.com/category/diy/
If they get the funding I can imagine them being a game changer for data gloves.
Kewl! I may just have to get my hands (sorry xD) on a pair of these!
I seem to remember seeing Steve Hogarth using gloves to play music in concert back in the early 90s, on the track The Uninvited Guest. So that’d place it about 20 years ago… which makes me feel a little old: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkOI7ZPhevc
Obviously there’s a difference in that that was just touch sensors, but in 20 years you’d pretty much expect there to be some significant improvements in technology. At the time I remember thinking that I’d seen similar attempts to make alternative electronic interfaces which were more fluid to use – Jean Michel-Jarre had used a keyboard controlled by breaking light beams, so you wave your hands through the air to play: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDg9_pvJJ_0
Not forgetting the cool instrument that is the Theremin, which lets you play music by moving your hands between two ‘antennae’: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTZK9FNgK74
Not knocking the new gloves, which seem rather cute, but it’s neat to remember the other non-mainstream ways that music has been played… and the Theremin wins for me for employing a really quite cool physical effect to do its job.
Also ‘very unique’? Something’s either unique or it’s not; you can’t shove an intensifier on it :-)
I was mostly the same. I reaction was “meh”
But mroe importantly; looking at the photo I was thinking “LEAVE BRITTANY ALONE!”
Ah I love Imogen Heap. One of her previous songs had some blips-and-beeps from a Gameboy running LSDJ (contributed by her friend PixelH8)
So much easier than having to carry around a full symphony orchestra.
Is she related to Uriah Heap?
Only one way to find out- see how she preforms live :D
I hope Hackaday got a nice paycheck for plugging mini.