Musical Haptics, Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 2018
Springer Series on Touch and Haptic Systems Series

This open access book offers an original interdisciplinary overview of the role of haptic feedback in musical interaction. Divided into two parts, part I examines the tactile aspects of music performance and perception, discussing how they affect user experience and performance in terms of usability, functionality and perceived quality of musical instruments. Part II presents engineering, computational, and design approaches and guidelines that have been applied to render and exploit haptic feedback in digital musical interfaces.

Musical Haptics  introduces an emerging field that brings together engineering, human-computer interaction, applied psychology, musical aesthetics, and music performance. The latter, defined as the complex system of sensory-motor interactions between musicians and their instruments, presents a well-defined framework in which to study basic psychophysical, perceptual, and biomechanical aspects of touch, all of which will inform the design of haptic musical interfaces. Tactile and proprioceptive cues enable embodied interaction and inform sophisticated control strategies that allow skilled musicians to achieve high performance and expressivity. The use of haptic feedback in digital musical interfaces is expected to enhance user experience and performance, improve accessibility for disabled persons, and provide an effective means for musical tuition and guidance.

Introduction.- Part 1- Haptics in Musical Interaction: Psychophysics and User Experience.- A Brief Overview of the Somatosensory System.- Once More with Feeling: The Dynamics of Performer-Instrument Interaction.- Perception of Vibrotactile Cues in Musical Performance.- The Role of Haptic Cues in Musical Instrument Quality Perception.- A Functional Analysis of Haptic Feedback in Digital Musical Instrument Interactions.- Auditory-Tactile Experience of Music.- Part II - Haptic Musical Interfaces: Design and Applications.- The MSCI Platform: A Framework for the Design and Simulation of Multisensory Virtual Musical Instruments.- Implementation and Characterization of Vibrotactile Interfaces.- Touchscreens and Musical Interaction.- Design of Vibrotactile Feedback.- Haptic Force-Feedback Instruments for the Laptop Orchestra of Louisiana.- Haptics for the Development of Fundamental Rhythm Skills Including Multi-Limb Coordination.