From Passive Agent to Musical Partner: Insights from the MAD Clarinet Project as a Case Study

Rui Travasso, and Enrico Dorigatti

Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression

Abstract

This paper examines the evolution of the MAD Clarinet, a technologically expanded acoustic instrument, as a case study of the relationship between a human performer and an algorithmic system in performative settings. Based on a practice-based and case study approach, the proposed research traces the development of the system from a passive agent to a more active performative partner. Reflecting on observations from successive iterations of the instrument, the paper shows how changes in system design affect performer-system interaction and the shaping of musical form. The MAD Clarinet highlights how algorithmic systems can participate in performance by influencing musical unfolding in real-time, contributing to a distributed but performer-driven creative process.

Citation

Rui Travasso, and Enrico Dorigatti. 2026. From Passive Agent to Musical Partner: Insights from the MAD Clarinet Project as a Case Study. Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.20784264 [PDF]

BibTeX Entry

@inproceedings{nime2026_86,
 abstract = {This paper examines the evolution of the MAD Clarinet, a technologically expanded acoustic instrument, as a case study of the relationship between a human performer and an algorithmic system in performative settings. Based on a practice-based and case study approach, the proposed research traces the development of the system from a passive agent to a more active performative partner. Reflecting on observations from successive iterations of the instrument, the paper shows how changes in system design affect performer-system interaction and the shaping of musical form. The MAD Clarinet highlights how algorithmic systems can participate in performance by influencing musical unfolding in real-time, contributing to a distributed but performer-driven creative process.},
 address = {London, United Kingdom},
 articleno = {86},
 author = {Rui  Travasso and Enrico Dorigatti},
 booktitle = {Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression},
 doi = {10.5281/zenodo.20784264},
 editor = {Benedict Gaster and João Tragtenberg and Anna Xambó and Tom Mitchell},
 issn = {2220-4806},
 month = {June},
 note = {},
 numpages = {6},
 pages = {730--735},
 presentation-video = {https://youtu.be/vgSOuWgbU8I},
 title = {From Passive Agent to Musical Partner: Insights from the MAD Clarinet Project as a Case Study},
 track = {paper},
 url = {http://nime.org/proceedings/2026/nime2026_86.pdf},
 year = {2026}
}