How IoT will change Music

Welcome to the most harmonious post of thethings.iO. This is about music. We can listen to it, play or even sing it; but what about feeling and living the song you love the most? No matter if you prefer jazz, electro, indie, heavy metal, or whatever, there’s always an IoT device or wearable that suits you perfectly. And at thethings.iO, we make it even easier to connect anything to the Internet.

Your favorite music just by pushing a button

It is said that music is a powerful tool to define ourselves. It is not what you see on the outside but rather what’s on the inside that really matters. Yes, everyone of us is completely different. While I am writing this post, I am listening to Aretha Franklin, but my colleague has opted for Madonna. Different people, different preferences, but one common passion: music.

Let’s describe a situation. You arrive home, it’s been a long day, and the only thing you need is to lay down on the couch and listen to music. Nowadays, you’re probably using your smartphone or tablet (or maybe even your TV!) to listen to your favourite playlists, which you have created before. What would you say if we tell you that there’s a device that’s perfect for you because it picks songs for you according to your pleasures?

Prizm is the connected device that’s capable of choosing the perfect music to play. As if you are meeting a partner, while interacting with Prizm, it starts learning and remembering your habits, what music you like, when and in which context. In addition, it is capable to recognize who is in the room and also sense the mood in there, to adapt the music according to any situation.

Fighting with your family or friends will surely end with the arrival of Prizm!

Best music on your wrist

It seems that wristbands are a really popular wearable among the Internet of Things in any field. Music is no exception. Let us introduce you some of the coolest wearables to play and live music.

The first one we want to mention is Soundbrenner, a wearable metronome. The torturing click-sound metronomes we have known are over, as the arrival of Soundbrenner has led it to be obsolete. This device makes you feel the beat, literally! The idea came since vibration guides a musician more naturally than a stressful click-sound, similar to if someone were to tap you on your shoulder. It also helps you develop a great inner sense of rhythm, master the most difficult sections of your songs, and simply enjoy your music! With Soundbrenner you can also create tempo maps or synchronise the vibrations via MIDI with Ableton Live, Logic Pro X, Avid Pro Tools and more.

Secondly, you need to know Lucie Labs. It defines itself as “the world’s first smart & creative LED lighting wristband that augments your music experience.” What does it do? This wearable band light up according to the rhythm.

You should also know Basslet, the bracelet that works alongside headphones and lets you feel the bass and depth of music through your body. Do you remember when we told you about being and living the music? We were imagining something like Basslet. Its main objective is to create the greatest experience for all music fans.

In a past, when you were listening to the radio and a cool song was playing, most of the time you just missed the name of it, which made you feel really upset. With apps like Shazam, the waiting for the name of a song disappeared. But, what if you do not need your phone to track a song that you love? Trak has the perfect solution to this! It is the first smart music tracker, which allows you to track a song and add it directly to your playlist. It is even easier to use than Shazam! Just touch your wrist, and you’ll “like” and save the song automatically. Yes, it’s that easy! And also you can synchronize it with your smartphone or tablet!

Hear sounds you could have never heard before

It is a well-known fact that everybody sees, smells, tastes… and obviously, hears differently. We all are born different, but Aumeo has made what may have seemed impossible as it provides a personalized audio experience with its custom-fitted product. Aumeo is a pocket-size device that corrects sound to your personal hearing sensitivity in the audio signal path from your music player (for example, your iPhone) to your ears. As it describes what it does, it “unlocks your best hearing potential so you can hear your favorite tunes the way they were meant to be heard — in all their fullness and richness.” Wouldn’t it be amazing to perfectly hear your favorite songs? To listen to  “Let It Be” in a way we have never heard, exactly as The Beatles wanted to sound, would be one of the best experiences any music fan could live.

Enjoy music & have fun playing music

If you are a music lover, you probably know the name Berklee (or at least you have heard anything about it). Berklee is one of the most important modern music schools in the world. It started as a jazz school, but nowadays it offers any kind of musical style. The question is, what is the relationship between Berklee and the Internet of Things?

Students of the Musical Technology Innovation master have created the “Sing Song Table,” which was in the Sónar+D this year (2015). Apparently, it looks like a Ping Pong table, but it places some sensors that allow you to create a melody while playing. How does it work? The contact and movement sensors send the signal to a synthesizer which records players’ movements and the ball pushes. The recording is connected to a computer to transform the match into an original and unique song. It also allows players to choose different preset styles to make this experience even more personal.

There is also a MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) controller to let a third player control the sensor route and audio parameters to mix the music during the match.

The Sing Song Table is not the only project that Berklee school introduced us at the Sónar+D. The Flex Sleeves react to the muscular movement so any singer can have the possibilities of a recording studio on their arms and hands. To sum up, it creates music with the movement of the musician’ arms, so it controls the voice, sounds, loops and visual effects (lightning) during a concert.

We will call it IoMT Clothing

Recently, while working on another thethings.iO’s project, we found some cool internet-connected clothing that can also help you make music, so we are going to introduce them to you…

The first one, is called the Electronic Rock Guitar Shirt, by ThinkGeek. The Electronic Guitar Shirt is not a toy that plays pre-canned musical riffs, it is a real musical instrument that allows you to play your favorite songs and sound great doing it. Let’s play the guitar, so it is easier now with this cool t-shirt.

And the other is the MIDI Jacket v1.0, which is a jacket that allows the user to create music through motion and touch sensors with a mobile app. A MIDI allows communication between digital music instruments, computers and other devices, so it also allows users to control and make music kinetically through body sensors and by detecting acceleration and flexion.

The role of thethings.iO in here

As you see, anything can be connected to the internet, even MUSIC! At thethings.iO we connect devices or wearables such as the ones we have mentioned in this post to the Internet. We are a Cloud solution for companies that decide to build new cool things that can be connected to improve our lives. If you want to know more about us, you can create an account by clicking here, sign up to receive our monthly newsletter or follow us on Twitter! Stay tuned and be the first in knowing the latest news of the IoT world and thethings.iO.