Csound’s Brain: A Real-Time EEG to Harmony, Melody, and Music System for Interactive Performance

Shiying Chen, and Richard Boulanger

Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression

Abstract

This paper presents a real-time brain-computer interface (BCI) system that moves beyond passive data sonification to prioritize intentional musical control. Developed as a collaborative dialogue between a student researcher and a legacy practitioner, the system maps EEG data from a Muse S Athena headband to melodic and harmonic parameters within Csound. While many BCI systems focus on autonomous generation, our contribution lies in a hybrid control model that uses a sample-and-hold mechanism to ’tame’ physiological ’jitter’ into a stable, SATB harmonic framework. We demonstrate that this ’Bio-Interactive’ approach allows the performer to balance spontaneous internal states with traditional musical intentionality. Through a series of performances - including multi-generational duets - we illustrate how ’Open Source Pedagogy’ and mapping transparency can transform raw brainwave data into a deeply personal and expressive musical instrument.

Citation

Shiying Chen, and Richard Boulanger. 2026. Csound’s Brain: A Real-Time EEG to Harmony, Melody, and Music System for Interactive Performance. Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.20784511 [PDF]

BibTeX Entry

@inproceedings{nime2026_169,
 abstract = {This paper presents a real-time brain-computer interface (BCI) system that moves beyond passive data sonification to prioritize intentional musical control. Developed as a collaborative dialogue between a student researcher and a legacy practitioner, the system maps EEG data from a Muse S Athena headband to melodic and harmonic parameters within Csound. While many BCI systems focus on autonomous generation, our contribution lies in a hybrid control model that uses a sample-and-hold mechanism to ’tame’ physiological ’jitter’ into a stable, SATB harmonic framework. We demonstrate that this ’Bio-Interactive’ approach allows the performer to balance spontaneous internal states with traditional musical intentionality. Through a series of performances - including multi-generational duets - we illustrate how ’Open Source Pedagogy’ and mapping transparency can transform raw brainwave data into a deeply personal and expressive musical instrument.},
 address = {London, United Kingdom},
 articleno = {169},
 author = {Shiying  Chen and Richard Boulanger},
 booktitle = {Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression},
 doi = {10.5281/zenodo.20784511},
 editor = {Benedict Gaster and João Tragtenberg and Anna Xambó and Tom Mitchell},
 issn = {2220-4806},
 month = {June},
 note = {},
 numpages = {7},
 pages = {1344--1350},
 title = {Csound’s Brain: A Real-Time EEG to Harmony, Melody, and Music System for Interactive Performance},
 track = {paper},
 url = {http://nime.org/proceedings/2026/nime2026_169.pdf},
 year = {2026}
}