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March 15, 2006 ../ New Jammer Controller AnnouncedAfter spending over two years and $1.5 million on its development, Thumtronics, an Australian concern, has developed a new electronic musical instrument called the Jammer. About the size of a paperback book, the Jammer combines an arrangement of note-controlling buttons with thumb-operated expressive controls.
The Jammer has several expression controls that can used simultaneously on the polyphonic instrument. Today's users are familiar with keyboard expression pedals and modulation wheels, but Thumtronics is trying to take the whole idea of expressive control to the next level by incorporating two thumb joysticks that can be used along with expression pedals and other modulators. If that wasn't enough, Thumtronics has devised a new methodology for playing music based on a Isomorphic Note Layout, "any two elements that together sound the same musical interval also have the same spatial interval relative to each other." So on the Jammer's "keyboard" any given musical interval has the same shape wherever it occurs. It gets pretty freaky from here, but the idea is that playing chords and transitioning from different keys is logical based on the Isomorphic layout. CEO of Thumtronics, Jim Plamondon translates, "Basically, that means that a given scale, chord progression, or even an entire song has the same fingering in every key. Many of music theory's abstract concepts appear as simple patterns on the Jammer's keyboard" allowing for easier comprehension and faster learning.
Dr. Sam Leong, Director of Music Education at the University of Western Australia and Co-Director of the recently-completed National Review of School Music Education, stated "I have not seen any innovation with as much potential to revolutionize music education. The Jammer could transform the musical landscape in the 21st century." No price has been announced. For more information hit Thummer.com
The Future: Thumtronics certainly has an uphill battle to climb. In addition to
needing a new round of investment to keep the company afloat, Thumtronics has the immense task of educating the public on an entirely new way of playing
music. Hundreds of start-ups and several big manufacturers have attempted such a feat, but only a handful actually Stick.
Copyright © 2006 Futuremusic® All Rights Reserved. |
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 As the name correctly implies, Experiments In Sound, is Futuremusic's latest endeavor for pushing electronic music technology to the very edge of what's possible. Experiments In Sound grew out of Futuremusic's avant-garde events in New York City that featured DJ's taking mixing and live sound reinforcement to a whole new level with the very latest gear and software. Now Experiments In Sound has become The Ultimate Mix Contest...
After the tremendous success of our groundbreaking The Next Big Thing DJ Contest, Futuremusic has decided to once again create a new paradigm...
Futuremusic wants to thank everyone who participated in The Next Big Thing 2004. John Digweed, Beatport, Alienware, M-Audio, Native Instruments, IK Multimedia, PVDJ, PK Graphics, Ableton, The DubHouse, Propellerheads, Technics, FreeFloat, The Church, PCDJ and every DJ who entered this year's event thank you. From the sheer number of quality mixes, we can tell you that dance music is thriving in the United States. The amount of outstanding talent and creativity really blew us away, and every DJ who's putting their heart, mind and soul behind the music is a winner. John Digweed has made his decision and the winner is... Think you got skills?? Then start practicing!
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