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They were trained on this type of gear, so they are most expressive with it. A lifetime of muscle memory can't be undone. What about children who are just begin

They were trained on this type of gear, so they are most expressive with it. A lifetime of muscle memory can't be undone. What about children who are just beginning today? I'm looking forward to a new generation of musicians whose native instrument is the touch panel. It seems odd to interface with modern technology using an 18th century physical interface. Its neat to watch Deadmau5 "play" his setup. I can only image what children born today will be doing when they are in their 20's.

roryokane 13y ago
The old physical interfaces aren’t surpassed yet. Physical interfaces have the advantage of sending feedback through touch. Piano keys that push up harder when you press harder help you notice how hard you’re playing, and keys that depress discretely help you aim your fingers away from the lines between keys so you are less likely to miss. Of course, the ideal situation is a mix of electronic devices’ flexibility and physical keyboards’ feedback. That could be something like a touch screen that can raise and lower physical bumps on it to feel like keys, or vibrate with different strengths in different places to provide feedback to each finger. But we don’t have that technology yet.
- fhars 13y ago
  The other idea is to put more sensors on the physical keys. Turns out, there is a kickstarter for that (just stumbled on it, don't know how legit it is): http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/instrumentslab/touchkeys-multi-touch-musical-keyboard http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/instrumentslab/touchkeys...
  - roryokane 13y ago
    Wow, I’ve met the creator of that Kickstarter before. I went to a free concert at Temple University where he demoed his “magnetic resonator piano” instrument (http://music.ece.drexel.edu/research/mrp http://music.ece.drexel.edu/research/mrp), which is kind of a more-limited acoustic version of the device in that Kickstarter. From talking to him after the concert and seeing what he’s produced, I don’t doubt that that Kickstarter is legit.
keithpeter 13y ago
Anecdotal: I understand that children who have learned to play on electronic (physical) keyboards (e.g. Yamaha stage piano) have problems when they encounter the mechanical actions on uprights and grands. What will happen is a slow change in playing style, so things will sound different. Sort of like the change from arch to Torte bow for violins, only more radical.
- tsm 13y ago
  I grew up playing the piano, then went on hiatus for two or three years, then took a year of harpsichord lessons (harpsichords have significantly lighter action. And narrower keys.) Now playing a piano is downright painful--I'm no longer used to the finger and wrist strength required to get a key down, nor am I used to the stretching required to hit larger intervals. The plural of anecdote is not "data", but I, for one, will no longer understate the difficulty in transitioning to a new type of action.

roryokane 13y ago

The old physical interfaces aren’t surpassed yet. Physical interfaces have the advantage of sending feedback through touch. Piano keys that push up harder when you press harder help you notice how hard you’re playing, and keys that depress discretely help you aim your fingers away from the lines between keys so you are less likely to miss. Of course, the ideal situation is a mix of electronic devices’ flexibility and physical keyboards’ feedback. That could be something like a touch screen that can raise and lower physical bumps on it to feel like keys, or vibrate with different strengths in different places to provide feedback to each finger. But we don’t have that technology yet.

fhars 13y ago
The other idea is to put more sensors on the physical keys. Turns out, there is a kickstarter for that (just stumbled on it, don't know how legit it is): http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/instrumentslab/touchkeys-multi-touch-musical-keyboard http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/instrumentslab/touchkeys...
- roryokane 13y ago
  Wow, I’ve met the creator of that Kickstarter before. I went to a free concert at Temple University where he demoed his “magnetic resonator piano” instrument (http://music.ece.drexel.edu/research/mrp http://music.ece.drexel.edu/research/mrp), which is kind of a more-limited acoustic version of the device in that Kickstarter. From talking to him after the concert and seeing what he’s produced, I don’t doubt that that Kickstarter is legit.

keithpeter 13y ago

Anecdotal: I understand that children who have learned to play on electronic (physical) keyboards (e.g. Yamaha stage piano) have problems when they encounter the mechanical actions on uprights and grands. What will happen is a slow change in playing style, so things will sound different. Sort of like the change from arch to Torte bow for violins, only more radical.

tsm 13y ago
I grew up playing the piano, then went on hiatus for two or three years, then took a year of harpsichord lessons (harpsichords have significantly lighter action. And narrower keys.) Now playing a piano is downright painful--I'm no longer used to the finger and wrist strength required to get a key down, nor am I used to the stretching required to hit larger intervals. The plural of anecdote is not "data", but I, for one, will no longer understate the difficulty in transitioning to a new type of action.