UC San Diego

Transforming the teponaztli is a renovation of the Aztec log drum in which a new electroacoustic instrument is formed. Two prototypes were constructed to arrive at a design which had the desired balance of acoustic sound and electronic signal. Applying signal processing effects to the teponaztli was first attempted for the piece Dos mil doce. Then the issue of the percussionist controlling the effects without taking the focus away from the performance was addressed. Trials to extend the control in order to push it towards the domain of shared/multi-user instruments were carried out. Methods for capturing different percussive strikes and gestures and using those to control the parameters were more successful. These were implemented using signal analysis and infrared sensors