The use of keyboard percussion instruments in choro, one of the earliest forms of Brazilian popular music, is a relatively recent phenomenon and its expansion into university music programs and relocation from small clubs and private homes to concert halls has changed the way that choro is learned and performed. For many Brazilians, this kind of innovation in a “traditional” genre represents a challenge to their notion of a Brazilian cultural identity. This study examines the dynamic relationship that Brazilians have with representations of their culture, especially in the area of popular music, through an in depth discussion of the use of keyboard percussion instruments within the genre of choro. I discuss the implications of using keyboard percussion in choro with a detailed description of its contemporary practice and a critical examination of the sociological and academic issues that surround choro historically and as practiced today. This includes an historical overview of choro and organology of keyboard percussion instruments in Brazil. I discuss multiple perspectives on the genre including a consideration of choro as part of the “world music” movement and choro’s ambiguous relationship to jazz. Through an examination of the typical instrumentation and performance conventions used in choro, I address the meanings and implications of the adaptation of those practices and of the various instrumental roles found in choro to keyboard percussion instruments. Solutions to problems relating to instrumental adaptation are offered, with particular attention to issues of notation, improvisation, rhythmic approach and the role of the cavaquinho. I also discuss the significance of rhythmic feel and suingue (swing) in relation to the concept of brasilidade (brazilianness) as informed by and expressed through Brazilian popular music.

Mobile computing is becoming one of the most widely adopted technologies. There are 1.3 billion mobile phone subscribers worldwide, and the current generation of phones offers substantial computing ability. Furthermore, mobile devices are increasingly becoming integrated into everyday life. With the huge popularity in mobile computing, it is critical that we examine the human-computer interaction issues for these devices and explicitly explore supporting everyday activities. In particular, one very common and important activity of daily life I am interested in supporting is conversation. Depending on job type, office works can spend up to 85\% of their time in interpersonal communication. In this work, I present two methods that improve a user's ability to enter information into a mobile computer in conversational situations. First I examine the Twiddler, a keyboard that has been adopted by the wearable computing community. The Twiddler is a mobile one-handed chording keyboard with a keypad similar to a mobile phone. The second input method is dual-purpose speech, a technique designed to leverage a user's conversational speech. A dual-purpose speech interaction is one where speech serves two roles; it is socially appropriate and meaningful in the context of a human-to-human conversation and provides useful input to a computer. A dual-purpose speech application listens to one side of a conversation and provides beneficial services to the user. Together these input methods provide a user the ability to enter information while engaged in conversation in a mobile setting.

Through in-depth analyses of nine of Mendelssohn’s Lieder ohne Worte, this paper argues that all nine pieces follow a single underlying event-arc typified by a cyclical drift into and out of the mediant key area. When considered in the specific context of Mendelssohn’s philosophical approach to song writing, the pianistic and cultural context of the pieces, and the connotations of the Lied genre along with strategic musical features common to all nine pieces, such as consistent accompaniment texture and relatively unstable opening melodic motives, this drift can be characterized as a musical embodiment of the internal experience of daydreaming. Though the nature and content of the “daydream” arc in each piece is different, the sense of drifting away and effortless return characteristic of this event-arc is always the same. / text

The master´s thesis project was performed in collaboration with the design and engineering company Eker Design from Fredrikstad in Norway, who is designing and developing flip cover NFC keyboards for smartphones. The new product idea is the full-sized NFC desktop keyboard for public institutions to offer to pupils, students or business people for instance. The thesis project is examining how such a product can be designed and should be designed in order to fit into its market and environment to meet the target group´s interest in order to be successful. With a human-centered design approach the project work was starting by the user and the market. The work consisted of analyzing and emphasizing with the market which mainly included the users, the competitors and the trends within a market analysis and a survey research. From the findings and insights of the research phase a design strategy and a business model for the new keyboard was created and communicated via a design brief. Different ideas and concepts were created, tested and presented via concept sketches along with mock-ups. The final concepts were evaluated via a concept evaluation in relation to the requirements of the business and user value. The final concept was developed and designed via the CAD software SolidWorks and the rendering software Keyshot. The design and development phase was focusing on functionality, usability, materials, surfaces, textures and the mechanical and technical solutions for the design. The result of this thesis project is named TRANSIT and is presenting how a collapsible desktop keyboard which is offering a NFC connection could look like and work to offer to people in public places such as libraries or universities and be as well be suitable for people to use at home. The TRANSIT keyboard is a simple and robust concept of a full-sized tactile keyboard which is offering a NFC connection as well as a Bluetooth connection for devices which do not support NFC yet. The design is aimed for smartphones and tablets and is offering a support which consists of an automated stand and a back plate which angle is adjustable step-less. The design allows to collapse stand, keyboard and back plate into a compact package which makes it easy to store and transport. Furthermore the design is providing a charging option for the smart device via energy harvesting or cable and has therefore internal batteries.   The project is ending with the final presentation of the physical model in scale 1:1. / Detta examensarbete genomfördes i samarbete med design och ingenjörsföretaget Eker design från Fredriksstad i Norge, som designar och utvecklar flipcover NFC tangentbord till smartphones. Den nya produktidén är ett fullstort stationärt NFC tangentbord för offentliga institutioner, tänkt att användas av till exempel elever, studenter eller affärsmänniskor. Detta examensarbete undersöker hur ovan nämnda produkt kan och bör designas för att passa dess målmarknad och möta målgruppens intresse för att bli framgångsrik. Med en Human-centered design approach, började projektet med att utgå från användaren och marknaden. Arbetet bestod i att analysera och empatisera med marknaden som huvudsakligen bestod av användare och konkurrenterna, samt att undersöka trender genom en marknadsundersökning. Med utgångspunkt från de insikter som uppkom genom projektets utforskningsfas, skapades en design strategi och en affärsmodell för det nya tangentbordet i form av en design brief. Olika idéer och koncept skapades, testades och presenterades via koncept skisser och mock-ups. Det slutgiltiga konceptet utvecklades och designades med hjälp av CAD programvaran SolidWorks och renderingsprogrammet Keyshot. Design och utvecklingsfasen fokuserade på funktionalitet, användbarhet, material, ytor, texturer och mekaniska och tekniska lösningar för designen. Den slutgiltiga produkten heter TRANSIT och visar på hur ett hopfällbart stationärt tangentbord som erbjuder en NFC-anslutning skulle kunna se ut och fungera för människor som arbetar på olika platser i det publika rummet, som på bibliotek eller universitet. Men även för privat användning i hem. TRANSIT tangentbordet är ett enkelt och robust koncept av ett fullstort taktilt tangentbord som erbjuder en NFC-koppling såväl som Bluetooth for enheter som ännu inte stöder NFC. Designen, som är riktad mot smartphones och tablets, har ett ställ som består av ett automatiskt stöd och en bakplatta med steglös justering. Designen gör att tangentbordet, stödet och bakplattan går att fälla ihop till ett kompakt paket som är enkelt att transportera och förvara. Dessutom erbjuds möjligheter att ladda smart-enheter via energi-skördning eller kabel då enheten har inbyggda batterier. Projektet avslutades med en slutpresentation av en fysisk modell i skala 1:1.

When Baroque keyboard works are performed on the piano, some pianists try to imitate the sound of the harpsichord and clavichord. Others try to avoid this by applying performance practices of the Romantic period to Baroque keyboard works, for the sake of musical expression. The aim of this study is to determine which alterations can be made to the performance of Baroque keyboard works on the piano to ensure a musically expressive, yet stylistically acceptable result. The following aspects are investigated: The production and quality of sound, as well as technique of playing at the harpsichord, clavichord and piano. The possibilities of musical expression at these instruments are also compared. The manner of accomplishing musical expression within a Baroque keyboard work, in terms of appropriate tempo, dynamics and articulation. The extent to which the sound qualities of the piano can be utilised when performing Baroque keyboard works on the piano. This study proves that the alterations made to the performance of Baroque keyboard works on the piano can be of such nature that the unique sound possibilities of the piano are utilised, but that the performance still corresponds to Baroque performance practice. / Thesis (M.Mus.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2007.

Originally presented as the author's Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Tübingen, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (v. 1, p. 467-478) and indexes.

Originally presented as the author's Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Tübingen, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (v. 1, p. 467-478) and indexes.

abstract: All too often, industrial designers face seemingly intractable obstacles as they endeavor to, as Simon (1996, p. 111) describes, devise "courses of action aimed at changing existing situations into preferred ones." These problems, described by Rittel and Webber (1973) as "wicked," are insurmountable due to the contradictory and changing nature of their requirements. I argue that that industrial design (ID) is largely subject to Rittel's quandary because of its penchant for producing single solutions for large populations; such design solutions are bound, in some senses, to fail due to the contradictory and changing nature of large and, thus, inherently diverse populations. This one-size-fits-all approach is not a necessary attribute of ID, rather, it is a consequence of the time in which it came into being, specifically, the period of industrial mass production. Fortunately, new, agile manufacturing techniques, inexpensive sensors, and machine learning provide an alternative course for ID to take, but it requires a new way of thinking and it requires a new set of methods, which I will elaborate in this thesis. According to Duguay, Landry, and Pasin (1997), we are entering an age where it will be feasible to produce individualized, one-off products from large-scale industrial manufacturing facilities in a way that is not only cost effective, but in many ways as cost effective as the existing techniques of mass production. By availing ourselves of these opportunities, we can tame the problem, not by defeating Rittel's logic, rather by reducing the extent to which his theories are appropriate to the domain of ID. This thesis also describes a test study: an experiment whose design was guided by the proposed design methodologies. The goal of the experiment was to determine the feasibility of a noninvasive system for measuring the health of the forearm muscles. Such a tool would provide the basis for assessing the true impact and possible pathogeny of the manual use of products or modifications to products. Previously, it was considered impossible to use surface electromyography (as opposed to needle or wire based electromyography) to assess muscular activity and muscular health due to the complexity of the arrangement of muscles in the forearm. Attempts to overcome this problem have failed because they have tried to create a single solution for all people. My hypothesis is that, by designing for each individual, a solution may be found. Specifically, I show that, for any given individual, there is a high correlation between the EMG signal and the movements of the fingers that, ostensibly, those muscles control. In other words, by knowing, with great accuracy, the position and the motion of the hand then it would become possible to disambiguate the mixed signals coming from the complex web of muscles in the forearm and enable the assessment of the forearm's health by non-invasive means. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.S.D. Design 2012

A networked multimedia system to assist teaching music keyboard skills to a class is described. Teaching practical music lessons requires a large amount of interaction between the teacher and student and is thus teacher intensive. Although there is a range of computer software available for learning how to play the keyboard, these programs cannot replace the guidance of a music teacher. The possibility of combining the music applications with video conferencing technology for use in a keyboard class is discussed. An ideal system is described that incorporates the benefits of video conferencing and music applications for use in a classroom. A design of the ideal system is described and implemented. Certain design and implementation decisions are explained and the performance of the implementation examined. The system would enable a music teacher to effectively teach a music class keyboard skills.

CORREIA, José Rogério dos Santos. Ensino de música por meio de teclados de percussão: uma experiência com o Grupo Marimbas de Maracanaú – Ceará. 2015. 127f. – Dissertação (Mestrado) – Universidade Federal do Ceará, Programa de Pós-graduação em Educação Brasileira, Fortaleza (CE), 2015. / Submitted by Márcia Araújo (marcia_m_bezerra@yahoo.com.br) on 2015-12-04T15:53:37Z No. of bitstreams: 1 2015_dis_jrscorreia.pdf: 11973797 bytes, checksum: 1c3e5a12c6e80a012060fdaedb15f9c4 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Márcia Araújo(marcia_m_bezerra@yahoo.com.br) on 2015-12-08T18:46:30Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 2015_dis_jrscorreia.pdf: 11973797 bytes, checksum: 1c3e5a12c6e80a012060fdaedb15f9c4 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-12-08T18:46:30Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2015_dis_jrscorreia.pdf: 11973797 bytes, checksum: 1c3e5a12c6e80a012060fdaedb15f9c4 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015 / This paper deals with the music education from an experience with children and adolescents in the city of Maracanaú - Ceará, which resulted in the formation of an instrumental percussion group called “Marimbas” Group. It was studied the process of teaching and learning from educational practices developed in the group in order to improve their musical performance and contribute to the formative aspects in the music education field. In compliance with the goals the results of the methods used were analyzed, there was a historic of musical training experience in “Marimbas” Group and organized a didactic material containing guidelines and instrumental technique exercises for percussion keyboards. I used as theoretical support the pedagogical proposal of the German music educator Carl Orff and methods of technical studies for percussion keyboards of Ney Rosauro and Morris Goldenberg. Besides these, also it served as a support the works of Cruvinel (2005), Suplício (2011) among others. The methodology used was a qualitative research outlined through a case observation, with the contribution of the authors Bogdan and Biklen (1994), Yin (2001) and Gil (2009). As instruments for data collection were used: literature, documents and natural participant observation. The results demonstrate the relevance of pedagogical practices developed in “Marimbas” Percussion Group of Maracanaú and enable these practices related to music education to be shared with other educators. / O presente trabalho versa sobre o ensino de música a partir em uma experiência com crianças e adolescentes do Município de Maracanaú – Ceará, que resultou na formação de um grupo instrumental de percussão denominado Grupo Marimbas. Buscou-se estudar o processo de ensino e aprendizagem a partir das práticas pedagógicas desenvolvidas no trabalho do mencionado grupo, afim de aperfeiçoar sua performance musical e contribuir para os aspectos formativos no campo do ensino de música. Em cumprimento aos objetivos foram analisados os resultados dos métodos utilizados, foi realizado um histórico da experiência de formação musical no Grupo Marimbas e organizado um material didático contendo orientações e exercícios de técnica instrumental para teclados de percussão. Utilizei como suporte teórico a proposta pedagógica do educador musical alemão Carl Orff e os métodos de estudos técnicos para teclados de percussão de Ney Rosauro e de Morris Goldenberg. Além destes, também serviram como subsídio os trabalhos de Cruvinel (2005), Suplício (2011) dentre outros. A metodologia utilizada foi uma pesquisa qualitativa delineada por meio de um estudo de caso com observação participante, tendo como aporte os autores Bogdan e Biklen (1994), Yin (2001) e Gil (2009). Como instrumentos para coleta de dados foram utilizados: levantamento bibliográfico, documentos e observação participante natural. Os resultados desta pesquisa demonstram a relevância das práticas pedagógicas desenvolvidas no Grupo de Percussão Marimbas de Maracanaú e possibilitam que essas práticas relativas ao ensino de música sejam compartilhadas com outros educadores.