Brain Musics: History, Precedents, and Commentary on Whalley, Mavros and Furniss
<p>Whalley, Mavros and Furniss (this issue) explore questions of agency, control and interaction, as well as the embodied nature of musical performance in relation to the use of human-computer interaction through the work <em>Clasp Together (beta) </em>for small ensemble and live electronics. The underlying concept of the piece focuses on direct mapping of a human neural network (embodied by a performer within the ensemble) to an artificial neural network running on a computer. With our commentary, we contextualize the work by offering a brief history of music that uses brainwaves. We review the use of EEG signals for musical performance and point at precedents in EEG-based musical practice. We hope to more clearly situate <em>Clasp Together (beta)</em> in the broad area of Brain Computer Musical Interfaces and discuss the challenges and opportunities that these technologies offer for composers.</p>