“Robotic Prosthesis Turns Drummer into a Three-Armed Cyborg.” www.news.gatech.edu. Georgia Institute of Technology, 6 Mar 2014. Web. 24 June 2014. http://www.news.gatech.edu/2014/03/05/robotic-prosthesis-turns-drummer-three-armed-cyborg
Professor Gil Weinberg of Georgia Tech developed a prosthetic arm equipped with two drum sticks attached to one arm. Drummer Jason Barnes is able to control one drumstick with his bicep muscles while the second stick is controlled by a “musical brain.” When playing, Barnes is able to modify the speed and rhythm of one stick, but the second stick responds to how he is playing and adds variations to the existing musical theme. This development seems straight out of a sci-fi movie. It’s incredible how a machine can respond to music while also being influenced by someone’s muscle movements. I think it’s interesting how a cyborg/robotic arm is able to respond and engage in an art form as elaborate as music. Music is often seen as a highly “human” form of art and is sometimes used to gauge how empathetic or “human” someone is, so seeing a person create music through robotics is really interesting to me. My only problem with this prosthesis is how much influence Barnes is getting from this robotic arm. While watching the video it seems as if he’s playing to accommodate to the independent drum stick instead of using it as an embellishment to the music he’s producing on his own. I think the relationship between a “high” art form and a robotic musical brain is really intriguing because it brings up a lot of questions about how music and art is achieved and if music can be produced by something that isn’t completely human or in control of the art itself.
