Intermedia Synthesis for Accessible Music Creation

Visitors to our exhibit will experience sound in a completely new, multi-sensory way. The center of our exhibit will spotlight interactive light and haptic systems connected to and controlled by a modular synthesizer. When a visitor creates or modifies sound using the synthesizer, that sound is instantly translated into light, visuals, and vibrations in real time. As visitors adjust pitch, rhythm, and loudness, sensory output will respond with changes in color, brightness, and motion of light patterns, while simultaneously feeling haptic feedback that represents aspects of the sound such as loudness and pitch. This allows visitors to see and feel sound rather than relying on hearing alone. A small screen displays a simple interface that shows how different sound features are being mapped to visual and tactile outputs, making the process easy to understand even for first-time users. The exhibit is designed to be hands-on and intuitive. Visitors of all hearing abilities can explore how music and sounds are created, collaborate with others, and experiment freely without needing prior musical experience. The overall exhibit will highlight how engineering and design can be used to make artistic expression more inclusive, demonstrating how technology can break down barriers and create shared experiences across different sensory abilities.