Tiny Touch Instruments
I've been creating a set of Tiny Touch Instruments (TTIs), touch-controlled musical instruments that run on a mobile web browser. The instruments have simple interfaces and are designed for intuitive interaction. TTIs give people easy access to communal music-making among audiences with mixed musical backgrounds. They recontextualize smartphones, which often foster disengagement, into tools for connection and creativity. They're also my playground for exploring ways to prompt interactivity, with various kinds of graphic and animated scores. In summer 2025, I presented a paper on composing for TTIs at NIME.
The instruments are built with p5.js and Tone.js. With support from the Processing Foundation, I'm working on a set of tutorials and workshops to teach people how to build their own touch instruments.
The instruments live at tinytouchinstruments.com. To use them on a mobile phone, make sure to unmute (with the physical switch on an iPhone).
In spring 2025, Daniel Lin and I co-wrote and performed a piece, Riverwalk Trail, for TTIs and cello. It was premiered at the Sonic Warehouse in Hanover, NH.
In summer 2024, I premiered a new piece for TTIs, Skipping, at the Sound / Image Festival at the University of Greenwich in London.
My first piece for TTIs, Skating, was performed as part of the Sonic Practice first-year showcase in spring 2024 at my home in Thetford, VT.