Creating the Next Generation of Musical Instruments

What if you could strum a guitar, tap a piano, bow a violin and loop a beat all on just one instrument?

If you’re in the mood for a hypnotic surround sound, try playing the Yaybahar with its fretted strings, coiled springs and drum skins.

Maybe you’re searching for a different type of harp. How about one made from a two-dimensional grid of laser beams. What about a 25-string harp that uses electromagnetic actuation modules to produce completely acoustic music.

These are just a few of the 22 inventions in the annual Margaret Guthman Musical Instrument Competition. The competition, hosted by the Georgia Institute of Technology, showcases the best new ideas in design, engineering and musicianship. Contestants compete for $10,000 in prizes.

“Our semifinalists are all inventors, musicians, designers and engineers who bring their interdisciplinary skills and talents to create the next generation of musical instruments,” said Gil Weinberg, director of the Georgia Tech Center for Music Technology.

The center — along with the School of Music, the College of Architecture and the Office of the Arts — sponsors the competition.

Inventors use technology and scientific discovery to create nontraditional sounds and musical interactions that enhance the way society plays and thinks about musical instruments. 

Some of the instruments resemble sleek, modern sculptures that belong in museums. Others look like they were assembled in the land of misfit toys.

Judging the semifinalists are: Allan Kozinn, a music critic and teacher; Pat Metheny, a Grammy award-winning jazz guitarist and composer; and Marcelo Wanderly, professor of music technology at McGill University in Montreal.

Prior to the competition, the School of Music will host the first Moog Hackathon, a 48-hour competition that runs from February 26-28. Contestants will design and build musical instruments using Moog platforms and other software and hardware prototyping tools provided by Georgia Tech.

Participants will compete for $5,000 in prizes and the top winner advances as a semifinalist in the Guthman Competition.

The Guthman Competition will be held March 2 and 3 at Georgia Tech’s Ferst Center for the Arts. 

The finals, which will be held at 7:00 pm on March 3, are free and open to the public. John Biggs, an editor with TechCrunch, will host the finale.

More information about the contest can be found at http://guthman.gatech.edu.