July 29, 2013
MPA Class of 2000 alumnus Andrew McPherson was recently featured in an article in New Scientist magazine for his breakthrough musical invention called TouchKeys. Developed by a team led by McPherson of technicians, composers, and musicians at Queen Mary, University of London, TouchKeys allows pianists to create various sounds on a keyboard such as vibrato and pitch blends. “Each key is fitted with a set of 26 sensors that work much like a smartphone’s touchscreen to detect touch,” the article explains. “The sensors know exactly where a finger has been placed, letting the player experiment with sounds.”
McPherson, who attended Mounds Park Academy from kindergarten through graduation, is now an electronic engineer, composer, and Assistant Professor in Digital Media at Queen Mary University of London. He builds new ‘augmented instruments’ which extend the expressive capabilities of familiar instruments. In addition to the TouchKeys, he is the creator the magnetic resonator piano, an electromagnetically-augmented acoustic grand piano used in projects with the London Chamber Orchestra and the album ‘Field of Reeds’ by These New Puritans. Prior to joining QMUL, Andrew completed his undergraduate and Master’s work in music and engineering at MIT, a PhD in composition at the University of Pennsylvania, and a postdoc at Drexel University.
McPherson is seeking funding to begin producing TouchKeys sensor kits through a Kickstarter campaign that launched today. Watch McPherson’s video on TouchKeys and support his project here.
More about Andrew McPherson:
