EXPANDING ACCESS TO MUSIC TECHNOLOGY- Rapid Prototyping Accessible Instrument Solutions For Musicians With Intellectual Disabilities

Using open-source and creative coding frameworks, a team of artist-engineers from Portland Community College working with artists that experience Intellectual/Developmental disabilities prototyped an ensemble of adapted instruments and synthesizers that facilitate real-time in-key collaboration. The instruments employ a variety of sensors, sending the resulting musical controls to software sound generators via MIDI. Careful consideration was given to the balance between freedom of expression, and curating the possible sonic outcomes as adaptation. Evaluation of adapted instrument design may differ greatly from frameworks for evaluating traditional instruments or products intended for mass-market, though the results of such focused and individualised design have a variety of possible applications.