As music lovers will tell you, playing an instrument is equal parts hands, heart, and soul. But what happens when musicians lose the use of their hands and can no longer play their instruments? Clarence Adoo faced this terrible predicament in 1995 after a car crash left him paralyzed from the neck down. Before the accident, Adoo had been a promising young trumpet player. After his paralysis, he felt robbed of his passion.
"Playing music was like eating or drinking," Adoo said in an interview with the Guardian. "Being unable to do it left me doubly paralyzed. I would rather play music than walk again."
Fortunately for Adoo and other musicians with disabilities, assistive technology (AT) has made it possible for them to pursue their musical passions once more. You're probably familiar with AT in the form of electric wheelchairs and hearing aids. This type of equipment helps bridge the gap between the challenges people with disabilities face and their wish to live life as they please. AT has also been applied to a handful of musical instruments, and Adoo is the lucky recipient of one of them.
Seven years after his accident, Adoo was making music again thanks to Headspace, a breath-controlled virtual instrument. Headspace's headset has sensors in it. These allow Adoo to select notes from a computer screen by directing the cursor with neck movements. He then produces the selected notes by blowing into a tube on the side of the headset. For volume control, he tilts his head.
MiMU Gloves are another AT musical instrument revolutionizing what musicians can do. Slip on a pair, and the lushest musical sounds and effects swell and ebb with simple hand and finger gestures. Like Headspace, MiMU Gloves employ sensors that link to a computer, but the gloves weren't created with disabilities in mind.
MiMUs are the brainchild of musician Imogen Heap. She assembled a team of engineers to make her a pair because she wanted to inject some vitality into her live performances. The gloves freed up Heap from sitting at her computer to make music. They allowed her to move about onstage and get into the groove. In 2015, pop superstar Ariana Grande wore a pair during her world tour. Soon after, the gloves became the creative lifeline for singer/songwriter Kris Halpin. He has cerebral palsy, a group of neurological disorders that can impair body movement and muscle coordination.
Musicians like Adoo and Halpin have regained much of their melodious inspiration with AT instruments. But these technologies are still unavailable to many. Headspace is one of a kind, and MiMU Gloves are pricey—over $3,000 a pair, if you can get them. (There's currently a waiting list.) But some organizations are taking a more practical approach to equipping musicians with disabilities. The One-Handed Musical Instrument Trust, for instance, challenges makers to customize everyday musical instruments using various AT attachments, such as prosthetic devices and body molds, so they can be played by musicians with impairments. So far, the competition has produced a wide range of AT solutions, including a guitar emulator and an enabling cello stand, as well as apparatuses for trumpets, trombones, and flutes. An educational program has allowed some children to try the solutions.
As AT musical instruments become increasingly available, there's no telling what new techno marvels may speed the process along. And that means more musicians with disabilities may soon get a chance to strike up the band.
Which of these is most important to include in a summary of this article?
Customizing everyday instruments, such as guitars and trumpets, is a practical way to increase opportunities for musicians with disabilities.
Musical instruments that utilize assistive technology are helping people with disabilities express themselves musically.
Revolutionary MiMU Gloves were designed by musician Imogen Heap and can be used by musicians with neurological disorders.
Assistive technology is the basis of Headspace, a musical instrument that allows a musician to make sounds using a headset with sensors in it.
Musical instruments utilizing assistive technology, such as MiMU Gloves and Headspace, are providing opportunities for musicians with disabilities to express themselves musically.
The article states:
She assembled a team of engineers to make her a pair because she wanted to inject some vitality into her live performances. The gloves freed up Heap from sitting at her computer to make music. They allowed her to move about onstage and get into the groove.
Which is the closest synonym for the word vitality?
patriotism
suspense
humor
liveliness
liveliness
Think about the following statement made by Clarence Adoo:
"Playing music was like eating or drinking…. Being unable to do it left me doubly paralyzed. I would rather play music than walk again."
The author's purpose for including this quote was to __________.
reinforce how important the ability to play music is to musicians
argue that physical mobility is not highly valued by musicians
suggest that musicians find playing music as easy as eating or drinking
explain why learning to walk again is a tremendous challenge
reinforce how important the ability to play music is to musicians
What is a cause-and-effect relationship that takes place in the article?
The One-Handed Musical Instrument Trust offered Kris Halpin a creative lifeline.
Headspace allowed Clarence Adoo to play a musical instrument again.
MiMU Gloves gave children with disabilities a chance to play various instruments.
Hearing aids injected new energy into Imogen Heap's live performances.
Headspace allowed Clarence Adoo to play a musical instrument again.
Based on information in the article, how are Headspace and MiMU Gloves similar?
Both use sensors linked to a computer.
Both are breath-controlled virtual instruments.
Both were the ideas of Imogen Heap.
Both were designed with disabilities in mind.
Both use sensors linked to a computer.
Which passage from the article best supports the idea that there are increasing efforts to adapt musical instruments so that people with disabilities can play?
Before the accident, Adoo had been a promising young trumpet player. After his paralysis, he felt robbed of his passion.
So far, the competition has produced a wide range of AT solutions, including a guitar emulator and an enabling cello stand, as well as apparatuses for trumpets, trombones, and flutes.
Musicians like Adoo and Halpin have regained much of their melodious inspiration with AT instruments. But these technologies are still unavailable to many.
Like Headspace, MiMU Gloves employ sensors that link to a computer, but the gloves weren't created with disabilities in mind.