Seminar: Augmented Reality Music Ensemble (ARME)

Music production has always been a social and interactive experience, but how can people practice music in a group when physically alone?

The Augmented Reality Music Ensemble (ARME) is an EPSRC-funded project that employs emerging immersive technologies to expand the ways musicians practice music in a music group. ARME integrates video capture, computational modelling and augmented reality so that a musician can practice with avatars having the appearance and interactivity of real musicians. Originally designed for string quartets, ARME is evolving to allow several kinds of real-time interactions.

This seminar will introduce the scientific principles and technological innovations behind ARME, from the perceptual and cognitive challenges of synchronizing humans (in real and virtual spaces) to the software and hardware that make interaction in a virtual ensemble possible. We will showcase the latest developments and discuss potential impacts on music pedagogy and beyond.

Attendees will also be able to test live demonstrations of ARME, where participants could interact with virtual musicians and adaptive metronomes in real-time.