moosikMasheens: music, motion and narrative with young people who have complex needs

We present moosikMasheens, a novel system for musical expression by young people who have physical impairments or complex needs, playing music in a mixed ability group context. moosikMasheens consists of three electro-mechanical musical instruments that can be controlled via simple tablet computer-based interfaces. An adapted glockenspiel, guitar and a set of electro-mechanical drumsticks have the potential to provide feedback through many perceptual channels including sonic, visual, vibro-tactile and kinsaethetic. Through the use of both a priori theory and an extended participatory requirements analysis, the system has been designed for use by both teachers/workshop leaders and students, as this has previously been found to be the most common form of group musical interaction. The technical implementation of the system is outlined with an initial evaluation.