Hands-On with the Tenori-On

Posted by Joel Johnson, September 7, 2007 8:27 AM |
tenorioncdm.jpgGame and film composer Gary Kibler shares his experiences with the Yamaha Tenori-On, the $1,200 sound and light grid released in the UK this week.
Regardless, the real story here may not be about the TENORI-ON itself, but more about its artist/inventor Toshio Iwai (seen above). About how one's lifelong artistic vision can sometimes, in what would seem to be incredible odds in a corporate environment, manage to manifest itself and make it onto the world stage as an actual retail product, and not just another one-off museum installation. Can you imagine what it must have been like persuading a huge corporate behemoth like Yamaha into investing who-knows-how-many millions on the making of what's essentially a piece of "interactive music art?" I can't. I have a hard enough time just shilling my little jingles and tunes for loose change to anyone willing to listen.
Yes, I know about the Monome—in fact, I'd expect to hear more about that from CDM soon—but Kibler nails why the Tenori-On is so interesting: it isn't the sort of product you expect from a big company, more art than product.

Hands On Tenori-On: Close Encounters of the Interactive Music Kind [CreateDigitalMusic.com]

Previously:: Grid Sequencers Coming Soon: Tenori-On and Monome [BBG]
Video: Yamaha's Grid Sequencer "Tenori On" Launches in London [BBG]

posted in: Art and Instruments
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Discussion

Take a look at this
#1 posted by a random John , September 7, 2007 1:53 PM

I'm surprised somebody hasn't hacked up a software version of this that will run off a tablet pc, or better yet, an iPod touch/iPhone.

Take a look at this
#2 posted by A New Challenger Author Profile Page, September 7, 2007 2:02 PM

Do want. It's only like 3 dollars more than a used copy of Electroplankton.

I've been messing around with the Game Boy Camera's DJ mode sequencer recently, and it's surprisingly robust for a little throwaway mode on a peripheral. With a little talent and no skill I was able to make some stuff that sounds like music. The real trick is keeping a 16 note loop from becoming too repetitive.

The best part about the Game Boy Camera is you can find it for less than $10 nowadays, stick it in your old Game Boy (or Game Boy Advance, since you have a DS now,) and voila, portable music sequencer.

I kept forgetting to watch the videos when you were posting about this earlier.

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