TouchTone is an electronic musical instrument for children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy designed with the goal of making music Easy, Fun, and Social. www.userionnov.com/touchtone

2. When I was 22, my older cousins started producing
babies.

3. I had no idea what to do during the
frequent nephew-uncle moments.

4. At 26, I felt equally awkward around a bunch of
physically challenged kids at a school.

5. I had an insight.

6. DIFFERENCE, not Disability,
is the problem.

7. We had to find something that we could
DO TOGETHER.

9. Music got me friends before I could speak Dutch.

10. Making music is a fantastic TOGETHER activity.

11. It has been taken seriously for a while now.

12. Music therapy uses musical activities as a medium.
• Language
• Palliative care
• Quality of life, pain management
• Mood and social interaction
• Psycho-motor development
• Communication skills

13. But the tools are a problem.

14. Making music requires skill, practice and years of work.

15. Not good for people with less than normal physical abilities.

16. What could I do with my passion for music and
design?

17. I could use my expertise and experience with

20. -to-start-playing, quick-to-learn,
ability-agnostic, and social.

21. So I designed TouchTone.

22. TouchTone

23. here:
http://youtu.be/fGzM2pI0Nl4

24. 01. More about TouchTone.

25. Designed in 2009 a my MSc. thesis project
http://mytylschoolutrecht.nl/
http://io.tudelft.nl/en/

26. Designed in cooperation with music therapists.

27. Is self-funded and exists as a single prototype.

28. Has been tested as a concept.

29. Has received much academic attention.
Conferences Reviews
“With Soumitra Bhat we have
a lovely synthesis of music,
technology and social impact.
It’s a clever way of giving
these children access to the
joy and therapeutic benefits
of making music.”
– 2literal.com
Publications
Bhat, S. 2010. TouchTone: an electronic musical instrument for children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy. In Proceedings of the Fourth
international Conference on Tangible, Embedded, and Embodied interaction (Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA, January 24 - 27, 2010).
TEI '10. ACM, New York, NY, 305-306.

30. Found benefits for parents and Music Therapists.
What makes your work interesting You are doing great work, I look
for us is that my son has reduced forward to your keyboard being
mobility in his hands as well as legs, made available for sale.
especially the left, and a hearing – Lisa G, Music Therapist,
disability (he uses hearing aids to Australia
boost high frequency sounds) but is
nonetheless very keen on music. It was great to see the actual
He also likes computers, but then product on the websites. The
don't all kids now? access is fantastic. Is there any
If there is some opportunity to try way we can purchase one?
your instrument, we'd be really - Tessa H, IICP, Kolkata, India
interested.
– Thom G , Parent, Denmark

31. 02. What I want to do.

32. Children are the main beneficiaries.
Worldwide
Rate of incidence: 2 to 2.5 per 1000 births.
 Today: 3.6 million out of 1.8 billion children < 14yrs of age have CP.
Hemiplegic CP: 1/3rd of CP cases...
Which is 1.2 million children today.

34. Music Therapists and Centers are key intermediaries.
International MT Associations: 50+
Average membership: 2000
Total: 100,000 MTs growing at 10%/yr
Each MT facilitates: 2 children of 8-11 yrs.
That’s access to 200,000 children
growing at 10%/yr

35. 03. What I need to know from you.

36. Benefits
. How can TouchTone benefit you as a Music Therapist, Association, Research
group, Parent, etc?
. What would you do with TouchTone?
. What are the most valuable things about TouchTone according to you?
Partnerships
. Would you like to work with me to develop TouchTone, the therapy
programs, retailing, advocacy, fund-raising, etc?
. Would you be interested in using TouchTone for longitudinal studies about
impact of music therapy?
Network and funding
. People and institutions that you believe I should reach out to because
we share similar goals, interests and activities.
. People and Institutions that can support TouchTone financially over a
long-term.

37. 04. What you can do:
1. Connect with me via email/skype.
2. Tell me what you think about TouchTone.
3. Share your ideas for possible collaboration and
support.
4. Help me spread the word about TouchTone to
people who you think might benefit from it.

38. More about TouchTone, me, my band, etc
1. Email: soumitra.bhat@gmail.com
2. Skype: soumitrabhat
3. www.userinnov.com/touchtone (about TouchTone)
4. www.soumitrabhat.com (about Me)
5. http://in.linkedin.com/in/soumitrabhat (my professional profile)
6. www.paravayu.com (my music)

39. Remember, TouchTone
To ensure that the joy and benefits of
making music are accessible to
ALL OF US to partake of TOGETHER.