"Freaky Tricky" and "Chordion" are accessible music interfaces developed by Georg Schmelzer Ziringer in cooperation with Harry Hötzinger, Cornelia Salomon (student of bachelors degree in Biomedical Engineering) and the AsTeRICS Academy team. Both music interfaces build upon the Open Source Software PureData. "Freaky Tricky" and "Chordion" can be combined with special input solutions - in our case with a FLipMouse.

Using the AsTeRICS framework (www.asterics.eu), the interface can be extended to use further tools, like a FaceTracker mouse with a webcam or an eyetracker like TobiiEyeX or the EyeTribe. Both solutions are supported by AsTeRICS and the corresponding models are included in the music interface download.

This video shows the music interface in action, played by Harry Hötzinger:

The interface consists of two parts: the Freaky Tricky step sequencer and the Chordion synthesizer:

You can use this step sequencer to play repeating sequences of e.g. drum or bongo beats. Pressing "ReStart"/"Stop" you can start/stop the sequencer. Each mark on the colored table represents one beat of a drum. It's possible to activate/deactivate a full line with the most left column.

In addition to the step sequencer beats, you can play chords with the second surface "Chordion". These chords are optimized for Harry's pieces of music, but they can be adapted to every individual song.

If you want to try this on your own, just download the Chordion_FreakyTricky.zip file. Everything necessary is described in the README in there. Of course you can use this interface with a normal mouse or any other piece of AT solution.

Building a music interface like this is a unique solution to destroy barriers for people and kids with motor restrictions.