Recommended books
Here’s a selection of some books from the field:
Some years ago, a friend told me I had to get this really weighty tome (the heaviest book I own, I assume). He introduced it to me as something like “the bible for computer music”. I never made it through the whole book actually, but you don’t need to. It’s such a good work of reference and it feels great to have it in your shelf (although it needs a lot of space, hehe). It is pretty much about everything around computer music, but it has a very essential chapter called “The Musician’s Interface”, introducing different input devices, performance software etc.
A short text snippet (from page 615):
(…) In the early years of computer music, the user interface was an afterthought – the last part of a system to be designed. Today the importance of good user interface design is well recognized. Synthesizers and software packages can succeed or fail on the basis of their interface, regardless of their functionality. (…)
New Digital Musical Instruments: Control And Interaction Beyond the Keyboard
I do not own and therefore did not read that book yet, but a very reliable source recommended it to me the other day. Looking forward to getting it soon, hopefully.
This book by Create Digital Music founder Peter Kirn is mainly about digital audio production techniques, but also provides insight to the field of new and experimental approaches to musical interaction.
A short text snippet (from page 579):
(…) One of the primary areas of interest is finding new input methods. The sonic potential of computers and digital audio technology has exploded over the past decades, but the hardware interface – keyboards, knobs, and faders – harkens back to the early part of the 20th century or, in some cases, the 17th. (…)
Some more general interface/interaction design reading:
Systemisches Design (german)
Designing Interactions
The Laws of Simplicity
Universal Principles of Design: A Cross-Disciplinary Reference
The Humane Interface. New Directions for Designing Interactive Systems.
About Face 2.0. The Essentials of Interaction Design.
Designing Interfaces.
Physical Computing: Sensing and Controlling the Physical World with Computers
Designing for Interaction. Creating Smart Applications and Clever Devices