Alison Balsom interviews
The third in our interview series, Alison Balsom discusses with OHMI the essential characteristics of musical instruments and the importance of making music.
The OHMI Seminar
This year's seminar at the Ars Electronica Festival is entitled:
True Musical Instruments and Disability - Technical Challenges & Possibilities.
It takes place in the Sky Media Loft at the Ars Electronica Centre on Sunday September 2nd from 1000 to 1200. The Speakers will be:
Last year we used the seminar to launch the OHMI-Ars Electronica Competition, but this year we will discuss the technical issues and challenges it involves. Do please come if you possibly can.
This year's seminar at the Ars Electronica Festival is entitled:
True Musical Instruments and Disability - Technical Challenges & Possibilities.
It takes place in the Sky Media Loft at the Ars Electronica Centre on Sunday September 2nd from 1000 to 1200. The Speakers will be:
- Stephen Hetherington (OHMI - UK)
- Doug Bott (Drake Music - UK)
- Ruud van der Wel and Christian Gouweleeuw (MyBreathMyMusic Foundation - NL)
- Markus Fischer (Fischerfilm - AT) and Michael Platz (Ars Electronica Futurelab - AT)
- Peter Purgathofer (TU Wien - AT)
Last year we used the seminar to launch the OHMI-Ars Electronica Competition, but this year we will discuss the technical issues and challenges it involves. Do please come if you possibly can.
Martin Fröst Interview
On 26nd November 2011 celebrated clarinetist Martin Fröst gave a performance of Mozart's Clarinet Concerto in A Major K622 with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra under Edward Gardner. Between rehearsals, Martin very kindly agreed to be interviewed by Stephen Hetherington, Founder of the OHMI Trust, about the nature of the OHMI competition. His fascinating insights as a professional musician brought to life the essential complexities of the challenge.
Click Here to watch the full length interview on our Vimeo page
Click Here to watch the full length interview on our Vimeo page
Christian Tetzlaff Interview
On 27th September 2011, OHMI Trust founder, Stephen Hetherington had the privilege of interviewing the renowned violinist, Christian Tetzlaff about the OHMI Trust. They discussed the OHMI challenge and the nature of musical instruments. The interview took place at Symphony Hall in Birmingham, where Christian had been rehearsing for a concert with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.
Click Here to watch the full length interview on our Vimeo page
Click Here to watch the full length interview on our Vimeo page
A short film by My-Breath-My-Music, made in Collaboration with OHMI
On June 9th this year, OHMI held a fund-raising event at the home of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. As part of the evening, we showed a special video made together with the Dutch foundation, My Breath My Music, that brought together three disabled musicians with members of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra. It points to the great possibilities that OHMI is working to achieve as well as some of the problems we face. You can watch it on Vimeo here or on YouTube by clicking this link.
Technical Difficulties, Resonance 104.4 FM
On Friday 25th of November, Tim Abbot broadcast the OHMI Trust's interview with Christian Tetzlaff on on Resonance FM. His weekly show, 'Experiencing Technical Difficulties', explores the interactions between disabled people and soceity. This follow up piece was in response to a broadcast the show made in September about The OHMI Trust where Tim interviewed Stephen Hetherington and Nick Wilsdon about the project.
Click here to listen to a podcast of the follow up show
Click here to listen to a podcast of the first show about OHMI
Click here to listen to a podcast of the follow up show
Click here to listen to a podcast of the first show about OHMI
Youth Music - Music is Power
INSTRUMENTS FOR ALL
Ok Friday fact fans, were you aware that there's not one single orchestral musical instrument that can be played with one hand? To redress this shocking imbalance the OHMI (One-Handed Music Instrument) Trust have launched a competition to challenge technologists, inventors, instrument makers and anyone
that just fancies a go, to design and build brand new one-handed instruments.
Thousands of people with disabilities in the UK, and millions across the world, are excluded from music making simply because of a lack of specially designed musical instruments.
The OHMI trust are working to create new instruments to open 'full and undifferentiated participation in musical life; whether at school, in the home, or in a professional ensemble'. The trust notes that this will have a profound impact not just on individuals but on society's relationship with disability, opening new realms of achievement and possibility.
The OHMI-Trust was formed this year (2011) by Stephen Hetherington and Martin Dyke in response to Stephen's attempts to find an instrument his hemiplegic daughter could play at school. As a former trumpet player with symphony orchestras, Stephen was alarmed to find that after much research there is currently no orchestral instrument that can be played with one hand and so decided to launch the competition.
Nick Wilsdon, a member of our dedicated Youth Music staff team (who also moonlights as an Assistive Music Technology Specialist at
Drake Music), recently attended and spoke at the Ars Electronica Festival as part of his extra-curricular activities. The Festival is one of the world's leading media arts events and was where the OHMI Trust were invited to launch their musical instrument design
competition.
Nick was treated to an astonishing array of inspirational and innovative exhibits and thinks the OHMI Trust's search for new one-handed instruments could unearth some exciting discoveries: "Only time will tell what wonderful contraptions the entrants of the OHMI competition will develop, but if they reflect the design flare, knowledge base and considered application of technology that Ars Electronica is famous for – I can't wait to start experimenting with them!"
Ars Electronica, HemiHelp, The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, The Digital Exploration Centre and Drake Music are all collaborating with the OHMI Trust to encourage technologists, inventors and instrument makers to design and build one-handed instruments that can emulate any of those used in the classical orchestra. The best will be awarded the world's most prestigious prize for creative technology; a Prix Ars Electronica.
Click here to read the article on the Youth Music Website
Ok Friday fact fans, were you aware that there's not one single orchestral musical instrument that can be played with one hand? To redress this shocking imbalance the OHMI (One-Handed Music Instrument) Trust have launched a competition to challenge technologists, inventors, instrument makers and anyone
that just fancies a go, to design and build brand new one-handed instruments.
Thousands of people with disabilities in the UK, and millions across the world, are excluded from music making simply because of a lack of specially designed musical instruments.
The OHMI trust are working to create new instruments to open 'full and undifferentiated participation in musical life; whether at school, in the home, or in a professional ensemble'. The trust notes that this will have a profound impact not just on individuals but on society's relationship with disability, opening new realms of achievement and possibility.
The OHMI-Trust was formed this year (2011) by Stephen Hetherington and Martin Dyke in response to Stephen's attempts to find an instrument his hemiplegic daughter could play at school. As a former trumpet player with symphony orchestras, Stephen was alarmed to find that after much research there is currently no orchestral instrument that can be played with one hand and so decided to launch the competition.
Nick Wilsdon, a member of our dedicated Youth Music staff team (who also moonlights as an Assistive Music Technology Specialist at
Drake Music), recently attended and spoke at the Ars Electronica Festival as part of his extra-curricular activities. The Festival is one of the world's leading media arts events and was where the OHMI Trust were invited to launch their musical instrument design
competition.
Nick was treated to an astonishing array of inspirational and innovative exhibits and thinks the OHMI Trust's search for new one-handed instruments could unearth some exciting discoveries: "Only time will tell what wonderful contraptions the entrants of the OHMI competition will develop, but if they reflect the design flare, knowledge base and considered application of technology that Ars Electronica is famous for – I can't wait to start experimenting with them!"
Ars Electronica, HemiHelp, The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, The Digital Exploration Centre and Drake Music are all collaborating with the OHMI Trust to encourage technologists, inventors and instrument makers to design and build one-handed instruments that can emulate any of those used in the classical orchestra. The best will be awarded the world's most prestigious prize for creative technology; a Prix Ars Electronica.
Click here to read the article on the Youth Music Website
Technical Difficulties, Resonance 104.4 FM
On Friday 30th September, Stephen Hetherington was interviewed about The OHMI Trust on London's arts radio station, Resonance 104.4 FM. He appeared on Tim Abbotts's show 'Experiencing Technical Difficulties' which explores the interactions between disabled people and society and breaking down the barriers and stigmas between the two. Nick Wilsdon, who spoke at the launch of the OHMI Competition at Ars Electronica was also on the show to talk about the current work of Drake Music.
Click here to listen to the podcast of the show
Click here to listen to the podcast of the show
Tyndallwoods Charity Matters
OHMI - THE ONE-HANDED MUSICAL INSTRUMENT PROJECT
Martin, Harriet and Judy were pleased to join with the family and supporters of Stephen Hetherington as he started on his B2B Cycle Challenge riding from Birmingham to Bordeaux in support of The One-Handed Musical Instrument Project.
There is presently no orchestral musical instrument that can be played with one hand. As a result hundreds of thousands of people with disabilities in the UK, and millions across the world, are excluded from music making.
The project aims to open full and undifferentiated participation in musical life; whether at school, in the home, or in a professional ensemble. The success of the project will have a profound impact not just on individuals but on society’s relationship with disability, opening new realms of achievement and possibility.
Stephen Hetherington was sent off with a powerful rendition of the Dam Busters by musicians of the CBSO conducted by Michael Seal. You can read the article on the Tyndallwoods website here.
Martin, Harriet and Judy were pleased to join with the family and supporters of Stephen Hetherington as he started on his B2B Cycle Challenge riding from Birmingham to Bordeaux in support of The One-Handed Musical Instrument Project.
There is presently no orchestral musical instrument that can be played with one hand. As a result hundreds of thousands of people with disabilities in the UK, and millions across the world, are excluded from music making.
The project aims to open full and undifferentiated participation in musical life; whether at school, in the home, or in a professional ensemble. The success of the project will have a profound impact not just on individuals but on society’s relationship with disability, opening new realms of achievement and possibility.
Stephen Hetherington was sent off with a powerful rendition of the Dam Busters by musicians of the CBSO conducted by Michael Seal. You can read the article on the Tyndallwoods website here.
Drake Music Blog, by Nick Wilsdon
ARS ELECTRONICA 2011 - PIXELSPACES - THE ONE-HANDED MUSICAL INSTRUMENT
Last weekend I was fortunate enough to attend one of the world's leading Media Art Festivals, The Ars Electronica Festival. I had been invited by new collaborators, The One-Handed Musical Instrument (OHMI) Trust to speak at the launch of their competition at the prestigious establishment in Linz, Austria. The OHMI Trust was formed by Stephen Hetherington and Martin Dyke in 2011 in response to Stephen's attempts to find an instrument his hemiplegic daughter could play at school. As a former Trumpet player with symphony orchestras, Stephen was alarmed to find that after much research there is currently no orchestral instrument that can be played with one hand – and as such has launched a competition to invent new instruments which allow for full and undifferentiated participation in musical life. Horst Hörtner, the Director of the Ars Electronica FutureLab offered OHMI a space at their Pixelspaces Conferences to bring the challenge to their talented transdisciplinary research and development team.
I arrived on the Saturday which allowed enough time to catch a tantalising glimpse of the incredible and inspirational exhibits on display at the festival, before the OHMI Conference started on the Sunday afternoon. It was clear from the outset that my expectations of encountering technologies and art of the highest level were not misplaced. I was particularly impressed with Apostolos Loufopoulos' intense sound installation 'Bee', the delightfully malevolent 'Newstweek', and Mark Shepard's subversive 'Sentient City Survival Kit', all of which were found in the OK CyberArts exhibition. After a late night meeting with Horst and fellow panellist Peter Purgathofer (Associate Professor, Vienna University of Technology) and a cycle-by sighting of Joe Paradiso (Director of the Responsive Environments, MIT Media Lab) I was all the more agog to see what the following afternoon's discussions would yield.
Before I knew it the time had come for my curiosities to be satisfied, and an eager crowd had gathered in the Sky Media Loft at the top of the Ars Electronica Centre. Over the last 10 years, Pixelspaces has established itself as the dynamic hub of a community of artists and scientists that enables conference participants to present their work and to discuss socially relevant issues associated with it – and it did not disappoint! After Stephen had set the scene, and issued the challenge to the room it was over to Joe, Peter & myself to elucidate the matter discussing existing technologies and offer general advice to potential competitors about instrument design.
I was pleased to convey the current state of assistive music technologies, their potential pitfalls and the invaluable benefits they can offer when properly applied – not to mention giving more international exposure to our Drake Music Young Ambassador, Charlotte White. Joe Paradiso took us on a whirlwind tour of delightfully obscure electronic contraptions, both commercial and from his esteemed research group at MIT. Meanwhile Peter Purkathofer got to the core of what drives us to learn a musical instrument, enthralling with his considered and insightful discussion of requisite features of any new musical instrument.
Whilst the current assistive music technologies are well developed, my experiences at Ars Electronica highlighted the fact that there is a gulf between them and technologies at the cutting edge. It is clear to see the reasons for this, particularly reflecting on my own experiences of bespoke instrument building – whilst there is clearly a demand for it, the process is decidedly time consuming and expensive and the resulting instruments often require regular upkeep and expert operators. Only time will tell what wonderful contraptions the entrants of the OHMI competition will develop, but if they reflect the design flare, knowledge base and considered application of technology that Ars Electronica is famous for – I can't wait to start experimenting with them!
Last weekend I was fortunate enough to attend one of the world's leading Media Art Festivals, The Ars Electronica Festival. I had been invited by new collaborators, The One-Handed Musical Instrument (OHMI) Trust to speak at the launch of their competition at the prestigious establishment in Linz, Austria. The OHMI Trust was formed by Stephen Hetherington and Martin Dyke in 2011 in response to Stephen's attempts to find an instrument his hemiplegic daughter could play at school. As a former Trumpet player with symphony orchestras, Stephen was alarmed to find that after much research there is currently no orchestral instrument that can be played with one hand – and as such has launched a competition to invent new instruments which allow for full and undifferentiated participation in musical life. Horst Hörtner, the Director of the Ars Electronica FutureLab offered OHMI a space at their Pixelspaces Conferences to bring the challenge to their talented transdisciplinary research and development team.
I arrived on the Saturday which allowed enough time to catch a tantalising glimpse of the incredible and inspirational exhibits on display at the festival, before the OHMI Conference started on the Sunday afternoon. It was clear from the outset that my expectations of encountering technologies and art of the highest level were not misplaced. I was particularly impressed with Apostolos Loufopoulos' intense sound installation 'Bee', the delightfully malevolent 'Newstweek', and Mark Shepard's subversive 'Sentient City Survival Kit', all of which were found in the OK CyberArts exhibition. After a late night meeting with Horst and fellow panellist Peter Purgathofer (Associate Professor, Vienna University of Technology) and a cycle-by sighting of Joe Paradiso (Director of the Responsive Environments, MIT Media Lab) I was all the more agog to see what the following afternoon's discussions would yield.
Before I knew it the time had come for my curiosities to be satisfied, and an eager crowd had gathered in the Sky Media Loft at the top of the Ars Electronica Centre. Over the last 10 years, Pixelspaces has established itself as the dynamic hub of a community of artists and scientists that enables conference participants to present their work and to discuss socially relevant issues associated with it – and it did not disappoint! After Stephen had set the scene, and issued the challenge to the room it was over to Joe, Peter & myself to elucidate the matter discussing existing technologies and offer general advice to potential competitors about instrument design.
I was pleased to convey the current state of assistive music technologies, their potential pitfalls and the invaluable benefits they can offer when properly applied – not to mention giving more international exposure to our Drake Music Young Ambassador, Charlotte White. Joe Paradiso took us on a whirlwind tour of delightfully obscure electronic contraptions, both commercial and from his esteemed research group at MIT. Meanwhile Peter Purkathofer got to the core of what drives us to learn a musical instrument, enthralling with his considered and insightful discussion of requisite features of any new musical instrument.
Whilst the current assistive music technologies are well developed, my experiences at Ars Electronica highlighted the fact that there is a gulf between them and technologies at the cutting edge. It is clear to see the reasons for this, particularly reflecting on my own experiences of bespoke instrument building – whilst there is clearly a demand for it, the process is decidedly time consuming and expensive and the resulting instruments often require regular upkeep and expert operators. Only time will tell what wonderful contraptions the entrants of the OHMI competition will develop, but if they reflect the design flare, knowledge base and considered application of technology that Ars Electronica is famous for – I can't wait to start experimenting with them!
Drake Music News, 14th September 2011
THE ONE-HANDED MUSICAL INSTRUMENT COMPETITION
Ars Electronica in Linz, Austria, hosted the launch at their annual festival, a unique event which brings together specialists from the fields of art, design, science and technology for a feast of performances and
exhibitions, discussion and debate.
The launch was chaired by Horst Hortner, Director of the Ars Electronica Futurelab. He was joined by speakers Stephen Hetherington, founder of The OHMI Trust, Joe Paradiso, MIT Media Lab Associate Professor, Co-Director of the Things That Think Consortium, Director of the MIT Responsive Environments Faculty, Peter Purgathofer, Associate Professor at the design and assessment of Technology Institute, Informatics Faculty, Vienna University of Technology and Nick Wilsdon, Assistive Music Technology specialist at Drake Music. Using their particular expertise, each speaker expanded upon the various challenges of the OHMI Competition. Video extracts can be seen at: http://www.ohmi.org.uk/presentation-videos.html
Particularly rewarding was the high level of interest among the public, media and festival participants that the OHMI competition raised, provoking many questions and much debate over several days. Ars Electronica director concluded that "It was an outstanding event – a huge success".
Now the rules and guidelines for the competition are agreed, competitors will shortly be able to participate by using Ars Electronica's usual on-line application system. Further information and links will also be available on the OHMI Trust website within a few days.
Click here to read the article on the Drake Music website
Ars Electronica in Linz, Austria, hosted the launch at their annual festival, a unique event which brings together specialists from the fields of art, design, science and technology for a feast of performances and
exhibitions, discussion and debate.
The launch was chaired by Horst Hortner, Director of the Ars Electronica Futurelab. He was joined by speakers Stephen Hetherington, founder of The OHMI Trust, Joe Paradiso, MIT Media Lab Associate Professor, Co-Director of the Things That Think Consortium, Director of the MIT Responsive Environments Faculty, Peter Purgathofer, Associate Professor at the design and assessment of Technology Institute, Informatics Faculty, Vienna University of Technology and Nick Wilsdon, Assistive Music Technology specialist at Drake Music. Using their particular expertise, each speaker expanded upon the various challenges of the OHMI Competition. Video extracts can be seen at: http://www.ohmi.org.uk/presentation-videos.html
Particularly rewarding was the high level of interest among the public, media and festival participants that the OHMI competition raised, provoking many questions and much debate over several days. Ars Electronica director concluded that "It was an outstanding event – a huge success".
Now the rules and guidelines for the competition are agreed, competitors will shortly be able to participate by using Ars Electronica's usual on-line application system. Further information and links will also be available on the OHMI Trust website within a few days.
Click here to read the article on the Drake Music website
Ars Electronica Blog, 4th August 2011
OHMI - ONE-HANDED MUSICAL INSTRUMENT
One of the big topics of this year’s Pixelspaces is OHMI, an organisation which wants to support the developement of an one-handed instrument which can be played within an orchestra. One of the challenges is the fact that they don’t want to have a computer do all the work, there are a lot of various soft- and hardwaresolutions for this already, the instrument should work on it’s own.
Click here to read the article on the Ars Electronica blog and watch the video
One of the big topics of this year’s Pixelspaces is OHMI, an organisation which wants to support the developement of an one-handed instrument which can be played within an orchestra. One of the challenges is the fact that they don’t want to have a computer do all the work, there are a lot of various soft- and hardwaresolutions for this already, the instrument should work on it’s own.
Click here to read the article on the Ars Electronica blog and watch the video
ChairGeek - Technology That Empowers, 4th August 2011
by David Thomas
A COMPETITION THAT IS MUSIC TO INVENTORS' EARS
It has been said that music connects people beyond race, gender, age, and abled or disabled. Music is definitely the one language that everyone on the planet can understand and appreciate. This is why it is important to make the creation of music accessible to people with disabilities. Enter The One-Handed Musical Interest Trust (OHMI). According to the OHMI “There is presently no orchestral musical instrument than can be played with one hand.” This is why they would like to see the invention of new musical instruments that would allow people with the use of one arm a “full and undifferentiated participation in musical life”.
This project was the idea of Stephen Hetherington, who recently cycled 1,000 kilometres, from Birmingham to Bordeaux to raise money for the cause. So far, the OHMI has raised over £20,000.
The OHMI, in conjunction with Ars Electronica, HemiHelp, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, and the Digital Exploration Centre, are challenging anyone from around the world, to design and build a one-handed instrument that can emulate any of those used in the classical orchestra. The full contest rules can be found at http://www.ohmi.org.uk/the-rules.html
The best will be awarded the Prix Ars Electronica which is one of the world’s most important awards for creativity and pioneering spirit in the field of digital media. This competition will be officially launched on September 4th at the International Ars Electronica Festival in Linz, Austria. This launch event for the contest will also feature a workshop/conference with speakers from the OHMI Project, the MIT Media Lab, and more.
If you are up to the challenge, please visit http://www.ohmi.org.uk/index.html to get all of the information and to submit your inventions. Good luck!
Click here to read the article on the ChairGeek blog
It has been said that music connects people beyond race, gender, age, and abled or disabled. Music is definitely the one language that everyone on the planet can understand and appreciate. This is why it is important to make the creation of music accessible to people with disabilities. Enter The One-Handed Musical Interest Trust (OHMI). According to the OHMI “There is presently no orchestral musical instrument than can be played with one hand.” This is why they would like to see the invention of new musical instruments that would allow people with the use of one arm a “full and undifferentiated participation in musical life”.
This project was the idea of Stephen Hetherington, who recently cycled 1,000 kilometres, from Birmingham to Bordeaux to raise money for the cause. So far, the OHMI has raised over £20,000.
The OHMI, in conjunction with Ars Electronica, HemiHelp, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, and the Digital Exploration Centre, are challenging anyone from around the world, to design and build a one-handed instrument that can emulate any of those used in the classical orchestra. The full contest rules can be found at http://www.ohmi.org.uk/the-rules.html
The best will be awarded the Prix Ars Electronica which is one of the world’s most important awards for creativity and pioneering spirit in the field of digital media. This competition will be officially launched on September 4th at the International Ars Electronica Festival in Linz, Austria. This launch event for the contest will also feature a workshop/conference with speakers from the OHMI Project, the MIT Media Lab, and more.
If you are up to the challenge, please visit http://www.ohmi.org.uk/index.html to get all of the information and to submit your inventions. Good luck!
Click here to read the article on the ChairGeek blog
The Independent, 8th July 2011
by Tom Sutcliffe
TUNE INTO A DARING COMPETITION
All being well there's a man on a bicycle somewhere between Cherbourg and the village of Montsurvent today – not part of the Tour, but raising money for the OHMI Project, an intriguing competition that is intended to encourage the creation of a one-handed instrument that can emulate any of those used in the classical orchestra. And don't say "well, we've already got the triangle" because as one of the rules explains qualifying instruments must be tunable and "capable of playing complex melodies". Don't say "trumpet" either, because you'd need some form of support, and a winning entry would have to be playable using only one hand and arm, excluding the shoulder. The instrument would also have to have had a concerto composed for it, which has already been performed. In other words, what's sought is a synthesised version of an orchestral instrument that would allow a one-armed or one-handed player of sufficient skill "undifferentiated participation" in orchestral performance. The man on the bicycle is Stephen Hetherington, who came up with the idea and persuaded the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and the Prix Ars Electronica, among others, to support it. If you want to give the project, and him, a bit of a following wind check out the project website.
Click here to read the article on The Independent's website
All being well there's a man on a bicycle somewhere between Cherbourg and the village of Montsurvent today – not part of the Tour, but raising money for the OHMI Project, an intriguing competition that is intended to encourage the creation of a one-handed instrument that can emulate any of those used in the classical orchestra. And don't say "well, we've already got the triangle" because as one of the rules explains qualifying instruments must be tunable and "capable of playing complex melodies". Don't say "trumpet" either, because you'd need some form of support, and a winning entry would have to be playable using only one hand and arm, excluding the shoulder. The instrument would also have to have had a concerto composed for it, which has already been performed. In other words, what's sought is a synthesised version of an orchestral instrument that would allow a one-armed or one-handed player of sufficient skill "undifferentiated participation" in orchestral performance. The man on the bicycle is Stephen Hetherington, who came up with the idea and persuaded the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and the Prix Ars Electronica, among others, to support it. If you want to give the project, and him, a bit of a following wind check out the project website.
Click here to read the article on The Independent's website
Gig, Performing Arts News for International Arts Managers, 29th June 2011
by Clare Wiley
ONE-HANDED INSTRUMENT CONTEST CHALLENGES INVENTORS
A competition challenging technologists, inventors and instrument makers to design and build one-handed musical instruments (OHMI) has been launched. The contest, part of an initiative to extend music-making opportunities to people with disabilities, is the brainchild of Stephen Hetherington, non-executive chairman of HQ Theatres.
OHMI competitors are required to construct instruments which fully emulate those used in a classical orchestra; the winning creation will give public performances in Linz with the Bruckner Orchestra and with a British orchestra.
There are currently no orchestral musical instruments that can be played with one hand, and Hetherington is hopeful that the new instruments will ‘open full and undifferentiated participation in musical life’ for thousands of disabled people.
‘Our success will have a profound impact not just on individuals but on society’s relationship with disability, opening new realms of achievement and possibility,’ he told AP.
The conditions of entry into the contest include that the instrument must be commonly found in a symphony orchestra, chamber orchestra or other ensemble, that a concerto has previously been composed for the instrument; that it does not already use any electronic devices, and is capable of playing complex melodies.
‘It is a very tall order to replicate the subtlety and complexity of an orchestral wind or string instrument,’ said Hetherington, who is cycling from Birmingham to Bordeaux to raise funds to get the competition up and running. ‘Of necessity, there will be a combination of delicate and subtle physical actions with electronic, programmable hardware and complex software.’
Project partners are Tte Digital Exploration Centre, working with HemiHelp, Ars Electronica, and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. The best will be awarded the world's most prestigious prize for creative technology, the Prix Ars Electronica.
Click here to read the article on Gig Magazine's website
A competition challenging technologists, inventors and instrument makers to design and build one-handed musical instruments (OHMI) has been launched. The contest, part of an initiative to extend music-making opportunities to people with disabilities, is the brainchild of Stephen Hetherington, non-executive chairman of HQ Theatres.
OHMI competitors are required to construct instruments which fully emulate those used in a classical orchestra; the winning creation will give public performances in Linz with the Bruckner Orchestra and with a British orchestra.
There are currently no orchestral musical instruments that can be played with one hand, and Hetherington is hopeful that the new instruments will ‘open full and undifferentiated participation in musical life’ for thousands of disabled people.
‘Our success will have a profound impact not just on individuals but on society’s relationship with disability, opening new realms of achievement and possibility,’ he told AP.
The conditions of entry into the contest include that the instrument must be commonly found in a symphony orchestra, chamber orchestra or other ensemble, that a concerto has previously been composed for the instrument; that it does not already use any electronic devices, and is capable of playing complex melodies.
‘It is a very tall order to replicate the subtlety and complexity of an orchestral wind or string instrument,’ said Hetherington, who is cycling from Birmingham to Bordeaux to raise funds to get the competition up and running. ‘Of necessity, there will be a combination of delicate and subtle physical actions with electronic, programmable hardware and complex software.’
Project partners are Tte Digital Exploration Centre, working with HemiHelp, Ars Electronica, and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. The best will be awarded the world's most prestigious prize for creative technology, the Prix Ars Electronica.
Click here to read the article on Gig Magazine's website
CBSO Press Release, 24th June 2011
One Handed Musical Instrument Project launches with CBSO in Birmingham
A unique project to invent musical instruments for people with the use of only one arm launches a fundraising event with the help of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.
At 09.30 on Monday 4 July at the CBSO Centre, the founder of the One-Handed Musical Instrument Project (OHMI Project), Stephen Hetherington, will receive a musical send-off by the CBSO on his solo 1000km fundraising cycle ride from
Birmingham to Bordeaux.
Musicians from the CBSO will give a fitting, one-handed musical send-off to illustrate the impossibility of playing orchestral instruments with one hand: two CBSO musicians will play each instrument, using only one hand each!
The OHMI Project was created to bring the possibility of music making to the millions of people around the world who only have the proficient use of one hand. At present there is no orchestral musical instrument that can be played properly by anyone with such a disability. This denies them access to the satisfaction, therapeutic value and even the careers available to others.
The OHMI Project has a straightforward aim: To promote the invention of new instruments that can properly emulate classical instruments and open full and undifferentiated participation in musical life to everyone.
Stephen Hetherington, OHMI Project founder said, “Making music unites the body, spirit and mind. For the performer, even more than the listener, it can be the source of a deeply personal joy. That the OHMI Project might make this available to millions of people currently excluded by a disability defines it as a project of supreme importance.”
Charity Number: 1143623 The OHMI Project takes the form of a competition to be formally announced in September to a global audience at the Ars Electronica Festival in Linz, Austria. Entrants will be challenged to design an instrument that can be played with one hand, and which accurately emulates the sound and artistic capabilities of a traditional orchestral instrument (see www. ohmi.org.uk for full rules). The winning entry(ies) will give public performances with the Bruckner Orchester in Linz and with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra in the UK. It will also be awarded a prestigious Prix Ars Electronica – the world’s most prestigious prize for creative technology.
Chief Executive of the CBSO Stephen Maddock said, “We are thrilled to be supporting this innovative project, which will really push the boundaries of technology. One of our core objectives at the CBSO is to bring live music to as many people as possible, and this project goes one step further in making a huge difference to those people who are currently excluded from playing a musical instrument. We are very excited about what the outcome could be!”
All money raised from Stephen’s solo bicycle challenge will go to cover the expenses of the competition. Everyone can help by sponsoring the B2B Cycle Challenge. A Sponsorship Pledge Form can be found on the OHMI website at: ttp://www.ohmi.org.uk/b2b-cycle-challenge.html
Click here to see the Press Release in full on the CBSO's website
At 09.30 on Monday 4 July at the CBSO Centre, the founder of the One-Handed Musical Instrument Project (OHMI Project), Stephen Hetherington, will receive a musical send-off by the CBSO on his solo 1000km fundraising cycle ride from
Birmingham to Bordeaux.
Musicians from the CBSO will give a fitting, one-handed musical send-off to illustrate the impossibility of playing orchestral instruments with one hand: two CBSO musicians will play each instrument, using only one hand each!
The OHMI Project was created to bring the possibility of music making to the millions of people around the world who only have the proficient use of one hand. At present there is no orchestral musical instrument that can be played properly by anyone with such a disability. This denies them access to the satisfaction, therapeutic value and even the careers available to others.
The OHMI Project has a straightforward aim: To promote the invention of new instruments that can properly emulate classical instruments and open full and undifferentiated participation in musical life to everyone.
Stephen Hetherington, OHMI Project founder said, “Making music unites the body, spirit and mind. For the performer, even more than the listener, it can be the source of a deeply personal joy. That the OHMI Project might make this available to millions of people currently excluded by a disability defines it as a project of supreme importance.”
Charity Number: 1143623 The OHMI Project takes the form of a competition to be formally announced in September to a global audience at the Ars Electronica Festival in Linz, Austria. Entrants will be challenged to design an instrument that can be played with one hand, and which accurately emulates the sound and artistic capabilities of a traditional orchestral instrument (see www. ohmi.org.uk for full rules). The winning entry(ies) will give public performances with the Bruckner Orchester in Linz and with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra in the UK. It will also be awarded a prestigious Prix Ars Electronica – the world’s most prestigious prize for creative technology.
Chief Executive of the CBSO Stephen Maddock said, “We are thrilled to be supporting this innovative project, which will really push the boundaries of technology. One of our core objectives at the CBSO is to bring live music to as many people as possible, and this project goes one step further in making a huge difference to those people who are currently excluded from playing a musical instrument. We are very excited about what the outcome could be!”
All money raised from Stephen’s solo bicycle challenge will go to cover the expenses of the competition. Everyone can help by sponsoring the B2B Cycle Challenge. A Sponsorship Pledge Form can be found on the OHMI website at: ttp://www.ohmi.org.uk/b2b-cycle-challenge.html
Click here to see the Press Release in full on the CBSO's website
Charity Number: 1143623
