The no-input pedalboard: practice, theory and reflection on the development of a new network-instrument

Danny Bright, and Lee Westwood

Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression

Abstract

This paper explores the innovative performance interfaces of Noise Peddler, a no-input pedalboard duo whose live and studio work demonstrates how the repurposing of the effects pedal can lead to its organological reconfiguration from ‘tool’ to ‘instrument’. Through a discussion of the inherent paradox in pedal design (controlled by the hands but placed at the feet), this paper identifies a latent potential that is unlocked when the pedalboard is approached as the primary sound source and performance interface. Lahdeoja’s (2010) theory of the network-instrument is used as a framework to understand how bringing multiple pedals - and pedalboards - together as an independent “network of sound production and processing units, spatially extended and configurable by the player according to the desired sonic results”, creates a unique interface for musical expression. This model, alongside thoughts from a range of pedal manufacturers on the intended applications of their guitar pedals, provides the foundation for a practical and theoretical reconsideration of the possibilities for interaction with effects pedals. Noise Peddler exemplify these possibilities in a practice-led review of the instrument, which explores the role of reconfiguration, mapping and novel performance gestures, straddling the boundary between academic research and the practicing artistic community.

Citation

Danny Bright, and Lee Westwood. 2026. The no-input pedalboard: practice, theory and reflection on the development of a new network-instrument. Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.20784437 [PDF]

BibTeX Entry

@inproceedings{nime2026_144,
 abstract = {This paper explores the innovative performance interfaces of Noise Peddler, a no-input pedalboard duo whose live and studio work demonstrates how the repurposing of the effects pedal can lead to its organological reconfiguration from ‘tool’ to ‘instrument’. Through a discussion of the inherent paradox in pedal design (controlled by the hands but placed at the feet), this paper identifies a latent potential that is unlocked when the pedalboard is approached as the primary sound source and performance interface. Lahdeoja’s (2010) theory of the network-instrument is used as a framework to understand how bringing multiple pedals - and pedalboards - together as an independent “network of sound production and processing units, spatially extended and configurable by the player according to the desired sonic results”, creates a unique interface for musical expression. This model, alongside thoughts from a range of pedal manufacturers on the intended applications of their guitar pedals, provides the foundation for a practical and theoretical reconsideration of the possibilities for interaction with effects pedals. Noise Peddler exemplify these possibilities in a practice-led review of the instrument,  which explores the role of reconfiguration, mapping and novel performance gestures, straddling the boundary between academic research and the practicing artistic community.},
 address = {London, United Kingdom},
 articleno = {144},
 author = {Danny Bright and Lee Westwood},
 booktitle = {Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression},
 doi = {10.5281/zenodo.20784437},
 editor = {Benedict Gaster and João Tragtenberg and Anna Xambó and Tom Mitchell},
 issn = {2220-4806},
 month = {June},
 note = {},
 numpages = {8},
 pages = {1172--1179},
 title = {The no-input pedalboard: practice, theory and reflection on the development of a new network-instrument},
 track = {paper},
 url = {http://nime.org/proceedings/2026/nime2026_144.pdf},
 year = {2026}
}