Eye-tracking digital music creation and performance: disability and ableism

Abstract

ABSTRACT This paper focuses on the developmental process of eye trackers as accessible digital musical instruments (ADMIs) by outlining collaborative research that develops digital art and music creation and performance tools. These tools require eye movements only and are of interest to individuals with all types of mobility and particularly provide music-making options to users with limited mobility. Research grade and gaming eye-tracking technology is adapted with custom software to enable music creation and performance using eye movements only. The relationship of ableism to disability and the role of digital technology to counter the negative social forces of ableism are considered. Because eye-tracking art and music creation tools are rare outside research lab contexts, all users with the ability to move one eye – regardless of other physical ability – have pre-existing capability, which makes this work especially exciting in a disability context.