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Abstract and Figures

Soundcool is a flexible, modular computer music software system created for music education. Moreover, Soundcool is an educational approach that embraces collaboration and discovery in which the teacher serves as a mentor for project based learning. To enable collaboration, Soundcool was designed from the beginning to allow individual modules to be controlled over Wi Fi using smartphone and tablet apps. This collaborative fea ture has enabled network based performance over long distances. In particular, the recent demand for social distancing motivated further explora tions to use Soundcool for distance education and to enable young musicians to perform together in a creative way. We describe the educational approach of Soundcool, experience with network performances with children, and future plans for a web based social network inspired collabora tive music creation system.
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CollaborativeCreationwithSoundcoolforSociallyDistancedEducation
JorgeSastre,NuriaLloret,StefanoScrani
GroupPerformingARTech,UniversitatPolitlènicade
Valnlècia
Jastrem,nlloret[at]upv.es,Stefano[at]tangatamanu.com
http://soundcool.org
RogerB.Dannenberg
SchoolofComputerScience
CarnegieMellonUniversity,US
rbd[at]cs.cmu.edu
http://cs.cmu.edu/~rbd
JesúsJara
EMMyDMaríiaDoloresPradera
Madrid,Spain
Jesusjara[at]
musicacreativa.cŽŵ
Soundcoolisaflexible,modularcomputermusicsoftwaresystemcreatedformusiceducation.Moreover,Soundcoolisaneducationalapproach
thatembracescollaborationanddiscoveryinwhichtheteacherservesasamentorforprojectͲbasedlearning.Toenablecollaboration,Soundcool
wasdesignedfromthebeginningtoallowindividualmodulestobecontrolledoverWiͲFiusingsmartphoneandtabletapps.ThiscollaborativefeaͲ
turehasenablednetworkͲbasedperformanceoverlongdistances.Inparticular,therecentdemandforsocialdistancingmotivatedfurtherexploraͲ
tionstouseSoundcoolfordistanceeducationandtoenableyoungmusicianstoperformtogetherinacreativeway.Wedescribetheeducational
approachofSoundcool,experiencewithnetworkperformanceswithchildren,andfutureplansforawebͲbasedsocialͲnetworkͲinspiredcollaboraͲ
tivemusiccreationsystem.
Keywords:CollaborativeCreation,Education,SocialDistance,COVID.
SoundcoolisafreesystemforcollaborativeSoundand
visualcreationthathasreceivedseveralawardsandhas
beeninvitedbytheWorldScienceFestival2019inNew
York.SeeScaranietal.(2020)andSastreandDannenͲ
berg(2020)andthereferencesthereinforacomplete
explanation.TheSoundcoolsystemoffersdifferentmodͲ
ulessuchasaudioandvideosources(liveaudioandvidͲ
eoinputs,players,hostsofVSTvirtualinstruments,signal
generators),audioandvideoeffects,mixers,video
switchers,etc.(SeeFigure1).ThesemodulesrunonperͲ
sonalcomputerswiththepossibilityforcontrolviaAnͲ
droidoriOSsmartphonesandtablets(seeFigure2),or
otherdevicesusingtheOpenSoundControl(OSC)protoͲ
col.ThesystemhasbeenusedinseveraleducationproͲ
jectsinAmericaandinEuropeanErasmus+education
projects,inschoolsanduniversities(Sastre/Dannenberg
2020).Theconnectionofthecontroldevicesistypically
doneusingalocalareanetworkbasedonaWiͲFihub.
However,withstudentsandeventeachersconfinedat
homebecauseoftheCOVIDͲ19situationandonlineeduͲ
cation,werealizedthatthenetworkingcapabilitiesof
Soundcoolcouldbehelpfulindistanceeducation.
In2016wedevelopedasystemallowingtelematic
performanceswithSoundcoolthroughtheInternet
(Scaranietal.2020).Weperformedaconcertcalledthe
GlobalNetOrchestra,withparticipantsatCarnegie
MellonUniversity(CMU)andtheUniversitatPolitècnica
deValència(UPV)(seeglobalnetorchestra.blogs.upv.es/).
However,thissystemwastoocomplicatedtobeused
generallyandquickly,andwehavedevelopedasimpler
systemforonlinecollaborativecreationatadistance.We
havetestedthisapproachbyrecordingseveral
performanceswithstudentsandteachersworkingfrom
theirhomes,showingthatthesystemcanbeusedeven
inthemorerestrictedsituationofCOVIDͲ19confinement.
Figure1.Soundcool4.0computerlaunchershowingSoundcool
modules.
Figure2.ControloftheSoundcoolmoduleswithsmartphones.
Onlinecollaborativecreationandperformance
SoundcoolwasusedforatelematicperformancebeͲ
tweenCMUandUPVin2016.Inthisperformance,our
goalwashighͲqualitysoundatbothperformancesites
andreliabletransmissionofparametersinrealͲtime,
evenattheexpenseofsomeaddedlatency.
TodeliverhighͲqualitysound,weduplicatedthelocal
Soundcoolconfigurationattheremotesite.Theideawas
todeliverthesameOSCcontrolmessagestoa“mirror”
Soundcoolserversothat,asidefromsmalltimingvariaͲ
tions,thesynthesizedsoundswouldbethesame,andwe
wouldnotneedtosendhighͲbandwidthaudiooverthe
Jorge Sastre et al. - Collaborative Creation with Soundcool for Socially Distanced Education
54Emille,theJournalofKoreanElectroͲAcousticMusicSocietyVol.18(2020)
network.ThenetworkwouldtransmitonlycontrolinͲ
formation.
Normally,OSCistransmittedovertheUDPprotocol,
whichisa“besteffort”protocolinwhichmessagesmay
bedroppedduetonetworkcontentionortransmission
errors.(Peterson/Davie2012)WhilethisisaminorprobͲ
leminalocalnetwork,packetlosscanbedisruptiveover
longdistancesandmany“hops”(forwardingretransmisͲ
sions)aspacketstransitmultiplenetworks.Toensure
reliabletransmission,wecreatedsimplesoftwaretoreͲ
ceiveOSClocally,forwardthemessagestothelocal
SoundcoolserveroverUDP,andforwardmessagestothe
remotesiteusingareliableTCPprotocol.(TCPuses
acknowledgements,retransmissionandsequencenumͲ
berstoguaranteeinͲorder,lossͲfreedeliveryofdataat
theexpenseofaddeddelaywheneveralostpacketmust
beretransmitted.)OncethemessagesarriveatthereͲ
motesite,theyareforwardedlocallytoSoundcoolvia
UDP,makingthecontrolsystemtotallytransparentto
theSoundcoolservers,butallowinguserstocontrolboth
serversasone.(SeeFigure3.)
Figure3.Fornetworkperformance,controlsforlocalSoundcool
applicationareduplicatedandtransmittedreliablytoaremotesite,
whereduplicateOSCmessagesareconstructedandforwardedto
another“mirror”Soundcoolconfiguration.
Asthepandemicisolatedteachersandstudents,we
lookedforasimplewaytouseSoundcool.VideoconferͲ
encesystemslikeZoomallowasingleSoundcoolserver
tosendsoundtoallparticipantswithminimalsetup
sinceparticipantsarealreadyconnectedbyvideoconferͲ
ence.ParticipantsneedonlysendOSCmessagesfrom
smartphonesandtabletstotheServertoenablerealͲ
timecollaboration.Asidefrompacketloss,themaindifͲ
ficultyisthatSoundcoolnetworkportsarenotimmediͲ
atelyaccessibleovertheInternetduetostandardsecuriͲ
typrecautionsinordinaryhomerouters.However,itis
notdifficulttoreconfiguretypicalhomerouterstoallow
receiptofUDPmessageswithspecificportnumbers.
OnlytheteacherrunningSoundcoolneedstodothis
becauseroutersonlyblockincomingtraffic,notoutgoing
messagesfromstudents.Onceportsareopened,stuͲ
dentsfromanywhereontheInternetcancontrolSoundͲ
cool,giventheSoundcoolprogram’sInternetIPaddress
andtheproperportnumbers.
AdrawbackoftheUDPprotocol,again,isthatitdoesnot
guaranteethatmessagesaredelivered.Testsshouldbe
conductedtoseeiftherateoflostmessagesislow
enoughforeducationalapplications.Ourfirsttestwas
doneonJune14,2020inaWebinarwiththeAssociation
ofMusicTeachersoftheMurciaRegion(ADMURM,
Spain)whereaSoundcoolprogramrunninginValencia
wascontrolledbyateacherandhersmartphoneinthe
cityofMurcia,atadistanceofabout200km.
(youtu.be/B4I3G2YCGͲs?t=1736)(SeeFigure4.)
Figure4.ControlofSoundcoolinaPCinValenciafromasmartphonein
Murcia,WebinarADMURM(Spain),June14th,2020.
Ourfirsttelematicperformancewiththenewsystem
featuredacollaborativecreationwithparticipantsfrom
theirhomesinMadridandValenciainSpain,andPittsͲ
burghintheUSA,onJune17,2020.ItwasaRemixofthe
famousKraftwerk's“TheRobots,”whichwasproposed
byJesúsJara,directoroftheEscuelaMunicipaldeMúsiͲ
cayDanzaMaríaDoloresPradera(Madrid,Spain).ParticͲ
ipantsincludedhisyoungSonotronic(curriculum)stuͲ
dents,anotherteacherfromtheschool,JuanManuel
Escalera,andRogerDannenberg,StefanoScarani,Saúl
Moncho,ManuelSáezandJorgeSastrefromtheSoundͲ
coolteam.JesúsandthecomputerwithSoundcoolwere
attheschool,andhesharedhisscreenwithalltheparͲ
ticipantsoveraZoomvideoconference.Theperformance
wasbasedontriggeringsamplesbytheparticipants,creͲ
atingasoundtrackforthevideo,whichistakenfromthe
animation“Superman:TheMechanicalMonsters”(1941).
ParticipantsalsocontrolledthecutͲofffrequencyofa
lowͲpassfilter,someeffects,andmixerlevels.SeeFigͲ
ure5andyoutu.be/O8IRLvGZnb8(EnglishsubtitlesavailͲ
able).
ThedelayandUDPpacketlossratewasnoticeablebut
acceptable.FromPittsburgh(worstcase),wecanmeasͲ
urelessthan1%ofpacketsarelostandaverageroundͲ
triptimeisabout120ms.PerhapsduetoZoomandmulͲ
tipleOSCconnections,weestimatethelosstobecloser
to20%andaddingthedelayofZoommakesthereͲ
sponsetimearound0.5s.ThepacketlosscanbemitiͲ
gatedbymakingslowcontrolchangesandfinishingeach
gesturewithafewsmallchanges,sinceeverysmall
୎ծହیݛઝԦ࠹ėیୣࢶʠչѿˬ࡫ࡶࡢଞ଎ԻԒیࡋҖԻଢѰ࢖ଜ
߾׹Ԧଞ˲ࢷ࢕ࡸ߆୆ୣଝܽࢿ55
changesendsanotherpacket,andatleastoneoutof
everyfewpacketsishighlylikelytogetthrough.
Figure5.KraftwerkRemixperformancewithparticipantscontrollinga
Soundcoolfilter,amixer,playersandeffects(someofthemareshown
bottomleft)fromMadridandValencia(Spain)andPittsburgh(USA),
June17th,2020.
AttheendofJuly,weofferedanonlinecourseoncollaboͲ
rativemusicandaudioͲvisualcreationwithSoundcoolfor
sociallydistancededucation,andtherewechallengedthe
studentstomakeaTVshowasthefinalcoursework.It
consistedofapieceofnewsandaconcertcalledCrónicas
Terrícolas(EarthChronicles).ThistimeweusedMicrosoft
TEAMSforthecoursevideoconference.(SeeFigure6.)
OneoftheparticipantsfromValencia(Spain)controlleda
videoswitcher(toprightofFigure6)tochangethevideo
sourceaccordingtotheTVshowstructure.
Figure6.SoundcoolpatchfortheEarthChroniclesshowwith
participantsinseveralcitiesinSpainandPittsburgh(USA),July28th,
2020.Thepatchincludesfour(4)sampleplayers(lowerleft),mixers,
videoplayers,avideoswitcherandmultipleaudioandvideoeffects
processors.Patching(notvisible)isbyclickinganoutputbuttonand
inputbuttoninsequence.Thesebuttonsandconnectionindicationsare
generallyintheupperleftandrightcornersofmodules.
TheTVshowvideocouldbeseeninfullscreen,however
wepreferredthattheparticipantsseetheTVshowina
smallwindowsothattheycouldalsoseehowtheyconͲ
trolledtheSoundcoolmodulesfromtheirhomes.The
centralcomputerwithSoundcoolwasatSastre’sofficein
Valencia.HewastheTVshowannouncerusingthelive
videofromawebcam.Inthefollowingweexplainthe
workthatcanbeseenatyoutu.be/rXQ73PWxzSk(English
subtitlesavailable).Thepieceofnewspartwastriggered
byasoundataudioplayer(P1,Redcolor)controlled
fromtheBasqueCountry(Spain)asasuddenalarm
sound.ItwasaboutacomputervirusinfectingcomputͲ
ersinCatalonia(Spain),thelocationoftheparticipant
whoproposedthispart.Herecordedvideopreviously,
whichweplayedatthecentralSoundcoolcomputer.To
representavirus,theparticipantcontrolledatransposͲ
ingeffectappliedtothevideovoiceandaparticipant
fromValencia(Spain)controlledvideoblendingwithanͲ
othervideo(controlsarevisibleattopcenter,andresult
isvisibleattherightofFigure6).Afterthat,amusical
performancetookplace.MelodiesandextendedtechͲ
niquesforclarinetandflutehadbeenpreviouslycomͲ
posedandrecordedbytheparticipants.Thequantityof
granularsynthesisVSTdelayeffectappliedtothemusic
wascontrolledbyStefanoScaraniinValenciaalongthe
piece,andRogerDannenbergcontrolledthefinalmixer
levelsforthewholeTVshowwithhissmartphoneconͲ
nectedfromPittsburgh(USA).Thepiecewasimprovised
insectionscuedbySastre’sholdingup1to5fingersin
sequence:
1) 2:14.Themusicstartswithsomeimprovisations
inavirtualinstrument(afreevocaltypeVST)
controlledbyaparticipantinCastillalaMancha
(Spain).
2) 2:31.PentatonicclarinetmelodiesareplayedusͲ
ingaSampleplayermodulecontrolledfromAnͲ
dalusiabytheircomposer.Theyaremixedwith
theclarinetextendedtechniquesplayedbyanͲ
otherSampleplayerfromtheMadridCommuniͲ
tybytheclarinetistthatrecordedthem.
3) 3:17.AtonalmelodiesfromtheValencianComͲ
munityareplayedinathirdSampleplayerby
theircomposerandmixedwithfluteextended
techniquesfromtheMurciaRegionplayedina
fourthSampleplayerbytheflutistthatrecorded
them.Also,afterinthispartat3:44thereisa
signwithbothhandsforalltheparticipantsto
stopperformingexceptforthegranularsyntheͲ
sisdelay,togivevarietytothemusic.
4) 3:54.Again,pentatonicclarinetmelodies,but
withspeedchangeeffectsandsomemoreparͲ
ticipantsperforming.
5) 4:42.WeendwithareturntotheVSTinstruͲ
mentimprovisationandafinalgranularsyntheͲ
sisdelayeffect.
Finally,theannouncersaysgoodbye.Theentireshow
consistingofmusiccompositions,recordings,etc.was
preparedinafewdays.TheUDPpacketlossesanddeͲ
lays,asbefore,wereacceptableforthisapplication,
showingthatcollaborativecreationandperformance
withSoundcoolispossibleeveninaconfinementsituaͲ
tion.WenotethatprecisetimingandrhythmicsynchroͲ
Jorge Sastre et al. - Collaborative Creation with Soundcool for Socially Distanced Education
56Emille,theJournalofKoreanElectroͲAcousticMusicSocietyVol.18(2020)
nizationarenotpossiblewithinthisapproach,butthat
merelyshiftsthepedagogicalandmusicalfocustosound
texturesandmusicorganizationatlargertimescales.
Detailsatsmallertimesscalescanbeaddressedthrough
theuseofsampleswithrapidandevenrhythmicevents.
TheroleoftheteacherincollaborativeeducaͲ
tion
Thenewteachingparadigmisbasedoninteractionand
collaborationbetweenteachersandstudents.Students
locateinformationwhentheyneedit.Theyhaveadevice
intheirpocketwithwhichtoansweraquestionatany
time.WhythendoestheteacherhavetoofferthemmaͲ
terialthattheycanfindthemselves?CollaborativeeduͲ
cationfocusesontheworkofthementorteacher,asa
guidetoselectnecessarycontent,takingintoaccount
thestudents’interestsandindividualneeds.Project
learningisessentialforthisnewdigitalcollaborative
training.Thisapproach,farfrombeingnew,hasbeen
knownsincethemiddleofthe20thcentury.Thebasic
levelsofBloom'staxonomyoflearning(Bloom1956)
alreadyanticipatethis.Knowledge(theory)andtheunͲ
derstandingandtheapplicationofthesetheoreticalconͲ
tents(problemsolvingandpracticalsessions)arelevels
thatdigitaltechnologyalreadyprovideswithouttheneed
forawiseteachertoprovidethem.However,thecomͲ
plexlevelsoflearning,knowledgeanalysisandsynthesis,
andinnovationarenotofferedbytechnologyalone.The
teachermustbethecenterofthedynamizationof
knowledgeandmustusethemeansthathisstudentsuse
daily.
Foryoungpeople,theInternet,socialnetworksandapps
constituteveryrelevantspacesforsocialization,encounͲ
ter,exchangeandknowledge.ThisiswhySoundcoolhas
beenconsideredsinceitsinceptionasacollaborative
learningandcreationtoolwheretheteacherhasavital
importanceinthelearningandcreationprocess.AsProͲ
fessorDuartsaysinhiseditorial“Internet,Socialmedia
andEducation,““Teachershavethechallengeofbeing
permeabletothechangesthatoccurinthecommunicaͲ
tiveenvironmentandsocialusesoftheInternet.The
truetransformationisfoundintheeducationaldynamics,
intheeducationalprocessthattakesplaceintheclassͲ
roomand,todaymoreandmore,outofit.”Ifyoureally
wanttomotivateandreachstudents,youwillhaveto
understandtheirenvironmentandadapttheteachingto
it.Andthisisthefundamentalbasisforthedevelopment
oftheSoundcoolproject,especiallyasanintegratorof
STEAM(Science,Technology,Engineering,Arts,and
MathematicsabroadeningofSTEM)forstudentlearnͲ
ing.Duetothisinterest,alargepartoftheproject'sefͲ
fortshasfocusedongeneratingtutorialmaterialsfor
teachers(seeFigure7)sothattheycanusethetoolin
theclassroomoronlineasinourlastremoteconnection
project.Therefore,severalsound,music,audioͲvisual
andmultidisciplinaryprojectsareavailableforteachers
insoundcool.org/en/projects/(seeFigure8),andteacher
videotutorialsforacousticsandlanguage(Spanish)are
availableinbit.ly/3lsJibu(seeFigure8).Thesetutorials
havefocusedonexplainingtoteachershowtocreate
collaborativetrainingactivitieswiththeirstudentsusing
theSoundcooltool,bothwithallthestudentsinthe
classroomandwiththecurrentsocialdistancingdueto
theeffectofCOVIDͲ19.
Figure7.ListofSoundcoolteachertutorials.
Figure8.BasicSoundcoolprojectsasradioworkshop,soundtracks,
producingandrecordingloopsatsoundcool.org/en/projects/.
Ithasbeenessentialforourprojecttocreatenotonlya
tool,whichwillremainasameretechnologicaldevelopͲ
ment,buttodesignawholemodelandateachingmethͲ
odologythatallowsteacherstoapplythismethodology
intheclassroom.Teachersareencouragedimplement
technologynotasanendbutasameansforeducation
andtrainingandtointroduceinnovationintheclassͲ
୎ծହیݛઝԦ࠹ėیୣࢶʠչѿˬ࡫ࡶࡢଞ଎ԻԒیࡋҖԻଢѰ࢖ଜ
߾׹Ԧଞ˲ࢷ࢕ࡸ߆୆ୣଝܽࢿ57
roomthroughthedevelopmentofcollaborativeprojects,
eitherinpersonorinvirtualform.
Giventhecurrentsituationinwhichweareimmersed,
studentscanbereachedatanytime,buttheteacherhas
tobewilling.Itmakesnosensetoclosecommunication
withthestudentoutsidetheclassroom,andacollaboraͲ
tiveenvironmentmustbecreatedthatallowsthisconͲ
tinuousandconstantinterrelationwithallthestudents,
whetherintheclassroomorinavirtualenvironment.
Thisiswhatourtoolofferstotheteacher:placeswhere
theteacheristhecenteroflearningwithouthavingtobe
intheclassroominpersonandwithoutlosingcontrolof
thetrainingoftheirstudents.
TowardSoundcoolasaSocialNetwork
Musicisaninherentlysocialprocess.Soundcoolhas
shiftedthefocusofelectronicmusicfromtheindividual
workingaloneatacomputertoacollaborativedesign
andperformanceprocess.Asweexplorehowbestto
deliverSoundcoolconvenientlytoyoungusersandeven
nonͲtechnicalteachers,wehavebegunacompletereͲ
implementation,movingSoundcoolfromaMaxͲbased
desktopapplication(cycling74.com/products/max)toa
WebAudioapplication(www.w3.org/TR/webaudio/)
runninginthebrowser.Wenowhavethebasicmodules
ofSoundcoolrunninginWebAudio(github.com/rbdanͲ
nenberg/soundcool),andourgoalistoofferawebsite
whereanyonecansimplyopentheirWebbrowserin
ordertouseSoundcool.
OneadvantageofawebͲbasedSoundcoolisthatusers
willautomaticallybeinterconnectedthroughashared
server.Thiswillenablecollaborationthrough:
x sharingandcopyingexamples,tutorials,and
completedworks.StudentscanlearnfromothͲ
ersorpublishtheirprojectstobeseenby
friendsandrelatives,
x jointprojectscanbeundertakenbysharing
modulepatchesandaudioorvideosamples.
Userscancomparedifferentversions,
x groupperformanceswhereeachparticipant
downloadsandoperatesa“mirror”ofthe
sharedpatch.Asperformersadjustparameters,
cuesounds,andmakeselections,thechanges
aretransmittedthroughtheSoundcoolserverto
allmirrors,andallchangesareeffectedglobally.
Inthisparadigm,itwouldnotbedifficultforgroupsof2
to20playtogether,evenwithmodestnetworkbandͲ
widthsinceallaudioisgeneratedlocally1.Weexpectto
makeafirstreleasebeforetheendof2020.
SummaryandConclusions
SoundcoolisaneasyͲtoͲusebuthighͲqualityandvery
capablesystemforcomputermusiccreation.WhileinͲ
tendedforyoungstudents,Soundcoolhasfoundmany
usesinprofessionalsettingsduetoitscombinationof
flexibility,highͲqualitysound,andeaseofuse(see
bit.ly/soundcoolͲpro).Muchmorethanmeretechnology,
Soundcoolwasdesignedfromthebeginningtosupport
collaborativecreation,particularlythroughthesimplicity
ofcontrollingmodulesusingsmartphones,tablets,and
WiͲFi.
ThecontrolofSoundcooloverWiͲFiledustouseSoundͲ
coolasthebasisforcollaborativenetworkperformances,
sendingSoundcoolaudioandscreenͲsharingtoperformͲ
ersusingaZoomvideoconference,andusingInternet
connectionsfromsmartphonesandtabletstoSoundcool
forcollaborativecontrolbythegroup.
Thecollaborationsandperformancessofarhavebeen
veryencouraging,includingaperformancewithschool
childrenfromMadridandwithteachersfromseveralcities
fromSpain.Welookforwardtomoreperformances.
Inthefuture,weaimtomakecollaborationandinteracͲ
tionevensimplerbycreatingawebͲbasedversionof
SoundcoolthatwillbeinherentlynetworkedandinterͲ
connected.ThiscontinuationoftheSoundcoolproject
willmakeiteveneasiertosharemedia,sounddesign,
patches,andrealͲtimecollaborativecontrolatadistance.
Soundcoolhasshowngreatpromiseasaninnovative
approachtomusiceducation,awaytoexposeyoung
studentstothepossibilitiesofcreativeandexperimental
electronicsound,andapowerfulmeanstoenablecolͲ
laborativecreation.Givenourcurrentneedforsocial
isolation,Soundcoolhasbecomeavehicleforbringing
youngperformerstogetheragain,bymakingnetwork
performancessimpleenoughforteachersandstudents
withoutextensiveknowledgeofnetworkingandcomͲ
putersystems.WelookforwardtomanymorepossibiliͲ
tiesformusicandeducationaswecreateaWebAudio
versionofSoundcool.
Acknowledgments.Thisworkhasbeensupportedbythe
GeneralitatValenciana(Spain)(grantsAICO/2020/151,
GJIDI/2018/A/169)andtheDanielandNinaCarasso
Foundation(grant16ͲACͲ2016).Wealsothankthe
SchoolofComputerScienceatCarnegieMellonUniversiͲ
tyandcontributorstoSoundcool’sWebAudioimpleͲ
mentation:ManuelAlcañiz,AnkitJoshi,AmitMeena,
SaúlMoncho,AmeyPatelandKristinHuanZhang.
Jorge Sastre et al. - Collaborative Creation with Soundcool for Socially Distanced Education
58Emille,theJournalofKoreanElectroͲAcousticMusicSocietyVol.18(2020)
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
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lyineducation,weleavethattofuturework.
... Soundcool is used in different fields, from the artistic professional to the educational, and, more recently, to the health sector as a system used in non-pharmacological therapies in situations of neurodegenerative diseases [7]. However, it is easiest to see the functioning of Soundcool in educational programs and projects originating in 2013, including (1) tests at a secondary school [8], (2) the first educational Soundcool Erasmus+ European Project KA201: "Technology at the service of learning and creativity: weaving European networks through collaborative musical creation," involving several primary schools, a secondary school and music schools from Italy, Portugal, Spain and Romania [9], (3) the collaborative creation for socially distanced education developed for the pandemic situation [10], and (4) developments for a Soundcool web-based system [11]. See [12] for a history of Soundcool, awards, Soundcool free edX courses, funding and a summary of its educational, professional and functional diversity projects. ...
... Soundcool is used in different fields, from the artistic professional to the educational, and, more recently, to the health sector as a system used in non-pharmacological therapies in situations of neurodegenerative diseases [7]. However, it is easiest to see the functioning of Soundcool in educational programs and projects originating in 2013, including (1) tests at a secondary school [8], (2) the first educational Soundcool Eras-mus+ European Project KA201: "Technology at the service of learning and creativity: weaving European networks through collaborative musical creation," involving several primary schools, a secondary school and music schools from Italy, Portugal, Spain and Romania [9], (3) the collaborative creation for socially distanced education developed for the pandemic situation [10], and (4) developments for a Soundcool web-based system [11]. See [12] for a history of Soundcool, awards, Soundcool free edX courses, funding and a summary of its educational, professional and functional diversity projects. ...
... The possibility of treating these devices as control surfaces introduces the possibility of fast and multitouch control. It also enables the essential ingredient of interaction, even remote interaction, between people that characterizes Soundcool [10]. Different people cooperate in real time to control a chain of sound and image generation and manipulation processes. ...
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This article presents a free framework for collaborative creation of interactive and experimental computer music called Soundcool. It is designed to fill a gap between rigid ready-to-use applications and flexible programming languages. The system offers easy-to-use elements for generating and processing sound, much like ready-made applications, but it enables flexible configuration and control, more like programming languages. The system runs on personal computers with an option for control via smartphones, tablets, and other devices using the Open Sound Control (OSC) protocol. Originally developed to support a new music curriculum, Soundcool is being used at different educational institutions in Spain, Portugal, Italy, and Romania through EU-funded Erasmus+ projects. In this article, we present our system and showcase three different scenarios as examples of how our system meets its objectives as an easy-to-use, versatile, and creative tool.
OpenSound control: state of the art 2003
  • M Wright
  • A Freed
  • A Momeni
Wright, M./ Freed, A./ Momeni, A. (2003). "OpenSound control: state of the art 2003." In Proceedings of the 2003 Con ference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression (NIME 2003): 153-159, Montreal, Canada.