FielDrum magnetic drummer frees you from the tyranny of learning your instrument

You've heard the old saw "fake it 'til you make it," right? This is an instrument that takes those words to heart. Developed by the Magnetic Musical Training project, FielDrum sees a pretty standard percussion instrument fitted with a series of electromagnets. Placed beneath the drum head, the magnets can either be told to "attract" or "repel" via-MIDI, creating some kick-ass paradiddles as the new drum student holds his or her sticks over the instrument. Sure, this all sounds like fun, but this is the kind of research that could have serious ramifications: How do people learn things involving "complex physical gestures?" Can people "learn-by-feel?" How does this approach compare to traditional motor training? We're dying to find out the answers -- but mostly we're dying to get out hands on one of these drums for our robot marching band. Video after the break.

[Via Make]

[Patrick @ Jan 28th 2009 12:21PM]

i hate it when you actually have to LEARN an instrument. takes all the fun out of playing it.
why not just make noise? its not like people will hate you. besides, hate=good...right?
maybe i should be a less angry person...

[Marc @ Jan 28th 2009 12:27PM]

Hey, that's how the Sex Pistols and other early punk bands did it. Not being being able to play their instruments, at least when they started, never stood in their way :)

[D @ Jan 28th 2009 12:26PM]

Apparently actually tuning the drum is outside of the realm of this project.

[Brutalgeuse @ Jan 28th 2009 1:22PM]

Who cares about tuning? Now you can play complex rhythms with your dingus.

Take that, Tommy Lee + boat horn.

[derekwf @ Jan 28th 2009 12:32PM]

You learn to play percussion through muscle memory. Having it done for you won't help at all.

[don @ Jan 28th 2009 12:42PM]

Just another example of the guitarhero-fication of the youngins. Why learn it when you can fake it? No wonder schools are losing funding for music programs...the kids don't want to learn.

Take the human element out of this, add a variety of drums and this would make a pretty cool installation somewhere.

[Marc @ Jan 28th 2009 1:11PM]

Could also go the other way: my 12 year old is now taking guitar lessons because of Guitar Hero/Rock Band. I'm considering learning Bass myself :)

[Dean @ Jan 28th 2009 1:13PM]

Yeah, pretty sure that Guitar Hero/RockBand and the like will only increase interest in learning instruments.

Losing funding for music programs in schools has been going on for a lot longer than any of this.

[Levi @ Jan 29th 2009 12:11PM]

Guitar hero and rock band might help influence interest in the real intruments, but I think the drums can actually help train people how to play real drums. I honestly think that if you were to set up a rock band drum kit like a real set, people could memorize the songs and translate them over to real drums fairly smoothly.

This is interesting, but I doubt it's application.

[JustMe @ Jan 28th 2009 12:43PM]

As a musician and a geek, I am both horrified and intrigued by this...

[ifoughtfate @ Jan 28th 2009 3:56PM]

Those were my exact thoughts as well.

[Nano2e @ Jan 28th 2009 4:11PM]

Same here. I myself am a drummer and am rather intrigued by this. I don't think the point is to have people fake drumming. I think the purpose is if they can mimic the movement will the timing become natural and will they be able to do it themselves? I wish engadget would follow this for just a little bit longer.

[Golferal @ Jan 28th 2009 7:00PM]

I'm wondering how this will work with 2 drumsticks, because unless you're the Rick Allen (Def Leppard), ya really need two drum sticks....

[Kris @ Jan 28th 2009 12:59PM]

Can this be adapted to an electromagnetic guitar and a pot of ferrous nail polish?

[sgt_easton @ Jan 28th 2009 1:09PM]

So, how long before people are paying money to see a robot band play on stage? (no Chuck E. Cheese comments, please)

As a musician, this pisses me off.

[Starnerf @ Jan 28th 2009 2:40PM]

You already can: www.animusic.com

[Robot @ Jan 28th 2009 4:24PM]

Too late: http://www.capturedbyrobots.com/

Watch the videos! Here's one on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zvU165DEYc

Amazing stuff.

I, for one, welcome the prospect of robotic bandmates.

[Gomer @ Jan 28th 2009 1:13PM]

It would be really interesting to see if they performed experiments with sheet music and doing it everyday, how long or if a person would begin to learn it. I agree that just having it move the sticks wouldn't train someone, but if they had the visual input from the sheet music, I wonder if it could be done. It could certainly be used to help students with difficult techniques.

[Eltorro @ Jan 28th 2009 1:24PM]

For high school or grade school marching snare players this might be helpful to learn rhythms and patterns. I was in band and I have to admit that the snare players had to play some pretty difficult stuff.

[derekwf @ Jan 28th 2009 1:35PM]

And we learned it through practice, not somebody doing it for you. You can't expect to just pick up a drum and play perfect flamacues and ratacues without lots of practice. Having it done for you is not practice.

[Eltorro @ Jan 28th 2009 1:41PM]

Dude of course you have to practice. But having your instructor show you the rhythm a couple of times will help you grasp what it's supposed to sound like. That's how it is with almost any instrument.

[Yuri @ Jan 28th 2009 1:25PM]

sounds like ...midi to me

[nicleT @ Jan 28th 2009 8:54PM]

Rrrzzzz... mmm, please wake me up when I finish my training.

[steve @ Jan 28th 2009 11:33PM]

if i can teach five-year-olds how to read and play basic drum set rhythms after one thirty-minute lesson, then surely even a pea-brained adult can handle such a feat. muscle memory does not equal muscle development; the only way you can develop those muscles well enough to play such a physically demanding instrument is to take a few minutes each day, get behind a [real] drum kit, and play what's written on the paper.

put down the purse, pick up a pair of sticks, and do it the right way.