Tenori-OnToshio Iwai (JP)

a new type of musical instrument, 2007

Tenori-On is a device with an interface similar to a video game console, and designed to use light and sound to create a new type of musical instrument. The 256 LED lights, arranged so that there are 16 vertical lines in 16 horizontal rows, function as switches; they create patterns of light that allow the player to visually control the sound. Tenori-On allows everyone to play music intuitively, creating a "visible music" interface. Tenori-On provides six different performance and sound/light modes for broad performance versatility, and these modes can be combined and used simultaneously for rich, complex musical expression.

*production in collaboration with Yamaha Corporation

Toshio Iwai (JP)

Toshio Iwai is a media artist born in Aichi, 1962. He graduated at the Graduate School of Art and Design, University of Tsukuba. He received the Gold Prize at the 17th Contemporary Japanese Art Exhibition in 1985, which made him the youngest person to be awarded this price. He has produced numerous projects dealing with the fusion of light, sound and physicality, including a performance with Ryuichi Sakamoto, which won the Grand Prize at Ars Electronica in 1997, and ELECTROPLANKTON for Nintendo DS.

Yamaha began over one hundred years ago when a young entrepreneur named Torakusu Yamaha set out to craft a high-quality reed organ. Before long, the company he founded had not only gone on to manufacture Japan's first piano, it had also gained recognition abroad with a Yamaha piano and organ being awarded an Honorary Grand Prize at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair. As it has grown, the company has capitalized on its unique heritage of artisanship and technological know-how to diversify into an astoundingly wide range of products and services. Today, Yamaha is a leader in buisnesses ranging from musical instruments and audio & video products to products related to information technology, new media services, home furnishings, auto components, specialty metals, mesic education and resort facilities.