聴覚障害者が生演奏「体感」　技術開発進むウェアラブルデバイス

【ニューヨークＡＦＰ＝時事】バイオリンの音色は胸郭に響き渡り、チェロとバスはその少し下、ホルンは肩に、そしてたいていの場合、ソリストは手首で感じられる。（写真は米ニューヨークのリンカーンセンターで、音楽を感知する振動装置を搭載したウェアラブルデバイスを装着し屋外コンサートに参加する人々）
　これは音響専門家であるパトリック・ハンロン氏が、聴覚障害者や難聴者もオーケストラの演奏を楽しめるよう設計した触覚スーツなどのウェアラブルデバイスを開発する際の技術の一つだ。こうして、ライブ演奏を誰でも楽しめるような取り組みが始まっている。
　米ニューヨークのリンカーンセンターでこのほど行われたクラシック音楽のコンサートでは、聴衆は音楽を感知する２４個の振動装置を搭載したウェアラブルデバイスを試着する機会があった。
　障害などの社会的障壁を軽減するために技術を活用するＮｏｔ Ｉｍｐｏｓｓｉｂｌｅ Ｌａｂｓ社の一部門である「Ｍｕｓｉｃ： Ｎｏｔ Ｉｍｐｏｓｓｉｂｌｅ」の共同創設者ハンロン氏は公演前、「（このデバイスは）体に働き掛けるものだ。振動を通じて３Ｄサラウンド体験」ができると、ＡＦＰに語った。
　聴覚障害者はこれまで、ライブ演奏を楽しむため、手をスピーカーに当てたり、振動を指先で感じるために風船を持ったりしていた。
　「誰もこんなに魅力的だとは思っていなかった」とハンロン氏。「人々の目を見れば分かる。魔法のようだ」と話した。
　２００１年９月１１日に起きた米同時多発攻撃で聴力を損傷した作曲家ジェイ・ジマーマン氏は、新たな技術によるウェアラブルデバイスはかつてない柔軟性やダイナミズムを提供していると評価する。
　リンカーンセンターでのコンサートを楽しんだライザ・フィオルマッタさんは、聴覚に問題はない。しかし、「強度、軽度いずれの聴覚障害者も音楽を経験できるというのは完璧」と称賛した。
　このウェアラブルデバイスはロックからディスコまで、音楽の雰囲気に合わせて調整可能だ。グレタ・ヴァン・フリートやレディー・ガガのコンサートでも使われてきた。
　ジマーマン氏は、この技術が持つ可能性に心を躍らせているものの、まだまだ課題はあると指摘する。
　「最終的な目標は、バイオリンの柔らかい音色を感じられ、そして、泣いてしまうほどに私の体と心に美しく感じられることだ」。「トロンボーンから放たれるのと同じ音を正確に感じ取ることができれば、さぞかし楽しいだろう」と、可能性に夢を託した。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2023/08/22-15:29）

The violins reverberate in the ribcage, while cello and bass are felt a little further down, with horns in the shoulders and, more often than not, soloists in the wrists.
That's one way audio expert Patrick Hanlon programs haptic suits, designed to enable concertgoers who are deaf or hard of hearing to experience orchestral music, as initiatives to improve inclusivity at live music performances break new ground.
At a recent classical concert at Manhattan's Lincoln Center, audience members had the chance to try on the wireless vests, featuring 24 points of vibration translating the music onstage.
It engages the body, Hanlon told AFP prior to the show, giving attendees a 3D-surround experience through vibrations.
Hanlon is a co-founder of Music: Not Impossible, an arm of Not Impossible Labs, which employs tech to try to alleviate social barriers, including those around disability.
Previous methods that deaf and hard of hearing individuals would use to enjoy live music included literally putting their hands on speakers, or holding a balloon to feel vibrations in their fingertips.
The aim of the vests -- along with bands at the wrists or ankles -- is to allow for a full-body experience, creating sensations that render the feelings music can evoke.
Nobody expects it to be so engaging, Hanlon said of the vests. And when you see it in people's eyes, it's magical.
Jay Zimmerman, a composer whose ability to hear was damaged due to the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, says the vests are an example of new technology offering more flexibility and dynamism than had been available previously.
My hope is down the road, is that we will be able to let deaf kids have experiences with real vibrations and real materials up close, so they start building this library of auditory memory -- even if it's not auditory through their ears, it's just different sensations, he told AFP.
I think if we can put it all together, there's real opportunities for us.
- 'Immersion' -
Lincoln Center, the prestigious arts complex on New York's Upper West Side, began working with Music: Not Impossible in 2021, both for orchestra shows and for their popular outdoor silent disco series.
Its most recent collaboration had 75 vests on offer during its outdoor concert as part of Korean Arts Week, which featured renditions of Korean folk music as well as Mozart's Concerto No. 2.
Liza Fiol-Matta was among the attendees, and though she is not hard of hearing, she was excited to test the tech.
Music is my major love, and the idea that there can be an experiential sense of the music for anybody is exciting, she said. But also for the deaf and hearing impaired -- that's perfect.
I love the idea of immersion, the whole immersive experience... music happens at so many different levels.
Flavia Naslausky, the business head for Music: Not Impossible, described how during early testing, Mandy Harvey -- a singer who lost her hearing after an illness -- was able to match the sound of the music after feeling the vibration that translated it.
That's when we knew that we were right on, because if somebody that wasn't hearing, from that vibration could match that note -- we were on the right direction, Naslausky said.
Music: Not Impossible's vests are not genre-limited. Hanlon explained audio leads like him can adjust the vibration points to fit a show's vibe, from rock to disco.
The vests have been used at Greta Van Fleet and Lady Gaga concerts.
Zimmerman is excited about the technology's potential -- but there's still a far way to go.
Ultimately, the big goal for me is that I will be able to feel a soft violin and it will be so gorgeous to my body and my mind that I would cry, he said. And I could feel that exact same note come through a trombone blast and it will be so hilarious I'm going to laugh.
That is the big dream.