We’re always looking for cool, new music, gadgets and gizmos a plenty to share with our students here in Seattle! Music involves a lot more than just playing a piano, singing a song, strumming a guitar or playing a tune on the violin. Music utilizes all of your senses, even ones you do not expect.
We already know that taking piano and other music lessons will help your brain, increase your math skills and your mood. Did you also know that music can help you hear smells and see sounds? Crazy, right?
We came across this very cool site the other day! http://www.patatap.com/
This site was created by Jono Brandel in collaboration with the melody design unit of Shawn James Seymour and Yoshimi Seymour. Their aim was that “with each sound they try to bring out the everyday wonder of overlooked moments and make the mundane seem magical.”
Patatap is an animation and sound kit that allows you to turn your keyboard into a musical instrument! With just a few keystrokes, the touch of your finger allows your keyboard to create melodies charged with moving shapes. It can be used on any device and browser. It seems to work the best with Chrome.
Patatap was created to introduce more people to “Synesthesia.” This is where stimulation of one sensory allows you to automatically experience stimulation of another sensory. An example would be hearing smells or seeing sounds. Sounds crazy, right? The history of this artform of musical expressions stretches back into early paintings done by Kandinsky and Mondrian. This program was meant to take components from their artwork and key elements and present their art form in a more direct and simple way.
You should try it and play all you like! Pressing Space Bar is a way of hitting ‘refresh’ on your art and clearing the color palette and sounds so you can start again.
For more information here are two other articles on it:
http://creativereview.co.uk/cr-blog/2014/march/patatap
http://works.jonobr1.com/Patatap
But…. if I were you.. I’d just try it! http://www.patatap.com/
