A modified Quad-Theremin for interactive computer music control

A novel designed system that uses modified Theremins for non-haptic interactive music control is presented. Without wearing any electronic glove or device, player with free hands and fingers movement is able to control the music content in a dynamic way, which can be applied to interactive music performance or gaming design. Four sets of antenna are used in this apparatus named Quad-Theremin to control four channels of MIDI (MAX) messages or digital audios (MSP). We use the Arduino micro-controller to interface the Quad-Theremin to the MAX/MSP running on a PC. Arduino is programmed by Processing Language, a language similar to Java and is compatible to MAX/MSP. The system is tested and demonstrated with some pre-defined scenarios. The result shows that our design is superior to other designs for it is easy and cheap to construct and is versatile for various interactive scenarios planning on MAX/MSP.