Berliner Boersenzeitung - Vibrating vests translate music for deaf concertgoers

EUR -
AED 4.297145
AFN 80.514189
ALL 97.785062
AMD 447.604669
ANG 2.093828
AOA 1072.828477
ARS 1490.487912
AUD 1.796502
AWG 2.108804
AZN 1.988028
BAM 1.957486
BBD 2.353467
BDT 141.762105
BGN 1.957455
BHD 0.441058
BIF 3473.584104
BMD 1.169933
BND 1.494998
BOB 8.054282
BRL 6.514886
BSD 1.165624
BTN 100.570924
BWP 16.653348
BYN 3.814451
BYR 22930.681112
BZD 2.341357
CAD 1.600836
CDF 3376.425952
CHF 0.932781
CLF 0.029099
CLP 1116.641972
CNY 8.395422
CNH 8.396338
COP 4721.052863
CRC 588.068828
CUC 1.169933
CUP 31.003217
CVE 110.364778
CZK 24.629434
DJF 207.352145
DKK 7.465247
DOP 70.496202
DZD 151.881856
EGP 57.362318
ERN 17.548991
ETB 161.976833
FJD 2.636797
FKP 0.866844
GBP 0.867107
GEL 3.170194
GGP 0.866844
GHS 12.181013
GIP 0.866844
GMD 83.65191
GNF 10113.062475
GTQ 8.952093
GYD 243.780396
HKD 9.183884
HNL 30.502317
HRK 7.535068
HTG 152.942585
HUF 399.224916
IDR 19090.669476
ILS 3.924416
IMP 0.866844
INR 101.064985
IQD 1526.941319
IRR 49268.786988
ISK 142.404159
JEP 0.866844
JMD 186.370616
JOD 0.829505
JPY 172.58438
KES 151.214174
KGS 102.310986
KHR 4675.747647
KMF 493.711538
KPW 1052.975712
KRW 1622.784363
KWD 0.357239
KYD 0.971353
KZT 617.952831
LAK 25138.082171
LBP 104436.540711
LKR 351.718962
LRD 233.701284
LSL 20.681067
LTL 3.454507
LVL 0.70768
LYD 6.326557
MAD 10.538027
MDL 19.809401
MGA 5184.110792
MKD 61.61307
MMK 2455.633802
MNT 4199.214209
MOP 9.423878
MRU 46.362962
MUR 53.220355
MVR 18.017096
MWK 2021.002574
MXN 21.866163
MYR 4.949397
MZN 74.828136
NAD 20.681067
NGN 1788.686529
NIO 42.894197
NOK 11.912752
NPR 160.896272
NZD 1.967184
OMR 0.449857
PAB 1.165654
PEN 4.156151
PGK 4.898906
PHP 66.715995
PKR 332.029338
PLN 4.252511
PYG 8864.787139
QAR 4.260652
RON 5.070255
RSD 117.185091
RUB 91.43491
RWF 1684.149859
SAR 4.388967
SBD 9.693004
SCR 17.057193
SDG 702.566756
SEK 11.210792
SGD 1.499748
SHP 0.919383
SLE 26.908132
SLL 24532.908576
SOS 666.002496
SRD 42.907303
STD 24215.245008
STN 24.519548
SVC 10.198959
SYP 15211.298754
SZL 20.672569
THB 37.80082
TJS 11.14908
TMT 4.106464
TND 3.424596
TOP 2.740098
TRY 47.28962
TTD 7.912951
TWD 34.446911
TZS 3035.975065
UAH 48.781282
UGX 4176.776129
USD 1.169933
UYU 47.062548
UZS 14660.878629
VES 136.841176
VND 30587.305732
VUV 138.951441
WST 3.084099
XAF 656.483176
XAG 0.030117
XAU 0.000345
XCD 3.161802
XCG 2.100645
XDR 0.816447
XOF 656.533722
XPF 119.331742
YER 281.895226
ZAR 20.669551
ZMK 10530.80464
ZMW 26.80855
ZWL 376.717855
  • CMSC

    0.0900

    22.314

    +0.4%

  • CMSD

    0.0250

    22.285

    +0.11%

  • RBGPF

    0.0000

    69.04

    0%

  • SCS

    0.0400

    10.74

    +0.37%

  • RELX

    0.0300

    53

    +0.06%

  • RIO

    -0.1400

    59.33

    -0.24%

  • GSK

    0.1300

    41.45

    +0.31%

  • NGG

    0.2700

    71.48

    +0.38%

  • BP

    0.1750

    30.4

    +0.58%

  • BTI

    0.7150

    48.215

    +1.48%

  • BCC

    0.7900

    91.02

    +0.87%

  • JRI

    0.0200

    13.13

    +0.15%

  • VOD

    0.0100

    9.85

    +0.1%

  • BCE

    -0.0600

    22.445

    -0.27%

  • RYCEF

    0.1000

    12

    +0.83%

  • AZN

    -0.1200

    73.71

    -0.16%

Vibrating vests translate music for deaf concertgoers
Vibrating vests translate music for deaf concertgoers / Photo: ANGELA WEISS - AFP

Vibrating vests translate music for deaf concertgoers

The violins reverberate in the ribcage, while cello and bass are felt a little further down, with horns in the shoulders and, more often than not, soloists in the wrists.

Text size:

That's one way audio expert Patrick Hanlon programs haptic suits, designed to enable concertgoers who are deaf or hard of hearing to experience orchestral music, as initiatives to improve inclusivity at live music performances break new ground.

At a recent classical concert at Manhattan's Lincoln Center, audience members had the chance to try on the wireless vests, featuring 24 points of vibration translating the music onstage.

"It engages the body," Hanlon told AFP prior to the show, giving attendees a "3D-surround experience through vibrations."

Hanlon is a co-founder of Music: Not Impossible, an arm of Not Impossible Labs, which employs tech to try to alleviate social barriers, including those around disability.

Previous methods that deaf and hard of hearing individuals would use to enjoy live music included literally putting their hands on speakers, or holding a balloon to feel vibrations in their fingertips.

The aim of the vests -- along with bands at the wrists or ankles -- is to allow for a full-body experience, creating sensations that render the feelings music can evoke.

"Nobody expects it to be so engaging," Hanlon said of the vests. "And when you see it in people's eyes, it's magical."

Jay Zimmerman, a composer whose ability to hear was damaged due to the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, says the vests are an example of new technology offering more flexibility and dynamism than had been available previously.

"My hope is down the road, is that we will be able to let deaf kids have experiences with real vibrations and real materials up close, so they start building this library of auditory memory -- even if it's not auditory through their ears, it's just different sensations," he told AFP.

"I think if we can put it all together, there's real opportunities for us."

- 'Immersion' -

Lincoln Center, the prestigious arts complex on New York's Upper West Side, began working with Music: Not Impossible in 2021, both for orchestra shows and for their popular outdoor silent disco series.

Its most recent collaboration had 75 vests on offer during its outdoor concert as part of Korean Arts Week, which featured renditions of Korean folk music as well as Mozart's Concerto No. 2.

Liza Fiol-Matta was among the attendees, and though she is not hard of hearing, she was excited to test the tech.

"Music is my major love, and the idea that there can be an experiential sense of the music for anybody" is exciting, she said. "But also for the deaf and hearing impaired -- that's perfect."

"I love the idea of immersion, the whole immersive experience... music happens at so many different levels."

Flavia Naslausky, the business head for Music: Not Impossible, described how during early testing, Mandy Harvey -- a singer who lost her hearing after an illness -- was able to match the sound of the music after feeling the vibration that translated it.

"That's when we knew that we were right on, because if somebody that wasn't hearing, from that vibration could match that note -- we were on the right direction," Naslausky said.

Music: Not Impossible's vests are not genre-limited. Hanlon explained audio leads like him can adjust the vibration points to fit a show's vibe, from rock to disco.

The vests have been used at Greta Van Fleet and Lady Gaga concerts.

Zimmerman is excited about the technology's potential -- but there's still a far way to go.

"Ultimately, the big goal for me is that I will be able to feel a soft violin and it will be so gorgeous to my body and my mind that I would cry," he said. "And I could feel that exact same note come through a trombone blast and it will be so hilarious I'm going to laugh."

"That is the big dream."

(K.Lüdke--BBZ)