In this paper, an installation is presented that connects Stanford and Stockholm through a one-of-a-kind combination of instrument and venue: the Skandia Wurlitzer theatre organ (Wurlitzer serial no. 1254) situated in the KTH R1 Experimental Performance Space, a disused nuclear reactor. A continuous stream of musical data, audio, and video between the two places explored the capabilities of the digital to play with the concepts of presence and embodiment, virtuality and the physical. In the installation, a series of performances presented new pieces written especially for this setting. The pieces were performed by musicians in Stanford, mediated in real-time, allowing them to play together with the theatre organ in Stockholm, temporarily fusing the two venues to create one ensemble, one audience, in one space.

This Studio offers researchers and designers an opportunity to investigate and discuss prototypes and in-process projects from a perspective that expands beyond material aspects, to also cover social and cultural ones. Participants will bring a project, device, or platform, which will be discussed as sociomaterials that actively participate across multiple social and cultural contexts. This perspective, as well as the prototypes and projects brought by the participants, forms the core of the Studio, where conversation will emerge over several phases: from the demonstration of the individual projects as things, to the generation of speculative fictions as to the role and use of these artifacts in the world. Finally, we end with a discussion of infrastructuring and appropriation of the artefacts and their social roles. The themes that will be examined in this Studio are agency, emerging behaviors, embeddedness and design strategies from a sociomaterial perspective of artifacts.

In the medieval tradition of ballads, a recurring theme is that of transformation. In a staged concert for chamber orchestra, singers and dancers called Varelser och Ballader (Beings and Ballads), we explored this theme using ballads coupled with contemporary poetry and new music. The performance made use of custom-made digital musical instruments, using video analysis and large-scale physical interfaces for transformative purposes. In this article, we describe the piece itself as well as how uncanny qualities of the digital were used to emphasize eerie themes of transformation and deception by the supernatural beings found in the medieval ballads.

In this paper we present a study of the interaction with a large sized string instrument intended for a large installation in a museum, with focus on encouraging creativity,learning, and providing engaging user experiences. In the study, nine participants were video recorded while interacting with the string on their own, followed by an interview focusing on their experiences, creativity, and the functionality of the string. In line with previous research, our results highlight the importance of designing for different levels of engagement (exploration, experimentation, challenge). However, results additionally show that these levels need to consider the users age and musical background as these profoundly affect the way the user plays with and experiences the string.

In this paper, a study on sonification of manual wheelchair movements is presented. The aim was to contribute to both rehabilitation contexts and in wheelchair sports contexts, by providing meaningful auditory feedback for training of manual wheelchair operation. A mapping approach was used where key parameters of manual wheelchair maneuvering were directly mapped to different sound models. The system was evaluated with a qualitative approach in experiments. The results indicate that there is promise in utilizing sonification for training of manual wheelchair operation but that the approach of direct sonification, as opposed to sonification of the deviation from a predefined goal, was not fully successful. Participants reported that there was a clear connection between their wheelchair operation and the auditory feedback, which indicates the possibility of using the system in some, but not all, wheelchair training contexts.

 In this paper we present a string-based, interactive, largescale installation for a new museum dedicated to performing arts, Scenkonstmuseet, which will be inaugurated in 2017 in Stockholm, Sweden. The installation will occupy an entire room that measures 10x5 meters. We aim to create a digital musical instrument (DMI) that facilitates intuitive musical interaction, thereby enabling visitors to quickly start creating music either alone or together. The interface should be able to serve as a pedagogical tool; visitors should be able to learn about concepts related to music and music making by interacting with the DMI. Since the lifespan of the installation will be approximately five years, one main concern is to create an experience that will encourage visitors to return to the museum for continued instrument exploration. In other words, the DMI should be designed to facilitate long-term engagement. Finally, an important aspect in the design of the installation is that the DMI should be accessible and provide a rich experience for all museum visitors, regardless of age or abilities.

This thesis collects and contextualizes several projects involving artistically directed prototyping where new artifacts have been developed, in multi-disciplinary groups of practitioners, for use in performance contexts. These projects and their resulting publications have been team efforts, and therefore all papers have more than one author. In the introduction, a complementary perspective to that of the publications is offered, engaging with the characteristics of the digital innards of these artifacts and their digital material qualities. The stance that software source code is a design material is argued, and the notion of the crafting coder is used to view processes that use code as material for artistic creation. Code is also prominently featured in the introductory chapter with examples of some of the central components of the sound processing techniques that have been successfully used in the projects described in this thesis.

The artifacts that are described in the thesis are: The Throat, an instrument for augmenting the singing voice using gestural control in real-time, The Vocal Chorder, a string based instrument using full-body interaction that also allows for audience participation through an installation mode, The Charged Room, a video tracking installation that lets users manipulate sound by moving across a stage, and Nebula, a garment that senses the users movements and responds with sound. These artifacts have been evaluated in the context they are designed for, and not only tested in laboratory settings, to make sure that the knowledge produced is valid. Several performances and peda-gogical courses have been used as empirical foundation for the claims of empowerment, expressivity, and performance qualities ascribed to the developed artifacts.

In this paper we present Nebula, a prototype for examining the properties of textiles, fashion accessories, and digital technologies to arrive at a garment design that brings these elements together in a cohesive manner. Bridging the gap between everyday performativity and enactment, we aim at discussing aspects of the making process, interaction and functional aesthetics that emerged. Nebula is part of the Sound Clothes project that aims at exploring the expressive potential of wearable technologies creating sound from motion.