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 people with disabilities live life as they please. AT has also been applied to a handful of musical instruments. Adoo has 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 idea of musician Imogen Heap. She assembled a team of engineers to make her a pair because she wanted to inject some zest 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 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. There is only one Headspace, and MiMU Gloves are pricey at over $3,000 a pair. 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. That way, the instruments can be played by musicians with impairments. So far, the competition has produced a wide range of AT solutions. These include 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 passage from the article best supports the idea that there are increasing efforts to adapt musical instruments so that people with disabilities can play?
Like Headspace, MiMU Gloves employ sensors that link to a computer. But the gloves weren't created with disabilities in mind.
Musicians like Adoo and Halpin have regained much of their melodious inspiration with AT instruments. But these technologies are still unavailable to many.
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. These include a guitar emulator and an enabling cello stand, as well as apparatuses for trumpets, trombones, and flutes.