What Sound Is This Gesture?

(Inside Science TV) -- Trying to describe a sound using only words is difficult. The researchers at the Institut De Recherche Et Coordination Acoustique/Musique (IRCAM) in Paris, France, a place that studies the science of music, discovered that people have a much easier time demonstrating a sound using their voices and gesturing. At the recent Acoustical Society of America meeting held in Jacksonville, Florida, the researchers presented their findings about: What do people use gestures for when they are imitating sounds and what information do these gestures convey?

This work was financed by the Future and Emerging Technologies (FET) programme within the Seventh Framework Programme for Research of the European Commission (Grant No. 618067, SkAT-VG)

Project website: Sketching Audio Technologies using Vocalizations and Gestures