MIDI Hats Make Beautiful Music

Introducing the MIDI hat. What will they think of next— it’s a hat AND a musical instrument, well kind of. It is also a collaborative experience that allows wearers to compose and improvise for a truly unique hat wearing and musical experience.  I’m thinking about a whole orchestra of these things, with LEDlights flashing and little yellow balls bouncing up and down.

Designed by Sunny Oh and Anna Obikane, the hat  is made from wool felt and embedded with steel wool to create pressure sensors.  I’m not sure just how the tech works, but according to a post on DVICE

Anna Obikane and Sunny Oh created the MIDI Hats from wool felt and embedded the garments with pressure sensors to control sound clips and attached fuzzy balls that allow the wearer to control the speed and volume of the sounds. Harnessing the Lilypad Arduino microcontroller board to fashionable effect, the duo programmed their composition via MAX/MSP software, which you can sample here.

Whatever— I’m into the wow factor myself. 

For more on the MIDI hat check out  fashioning tech.com