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Special concert gives deaf the chance to rock – Metro US

Special concert gives deaf the chance to rock

The first rock concert for the deaf is going to be held in Toronto at Clinton’s Tavern next month.

At the March 5 concert, the deaf will get a chance to rock thanks to a series of “emoti-chairs” designed to analyze sound frequencies and translate them into vibrations, motions and blasts of air.

The concert is being billed as the “world’s first” accessible rock concert for the deaf and hard of hearing.

Five emoti-chairs will give the deaf the opportunity to experience the music. Besides the emoti-chairs, the concert will also have interpreters, open captioning and music visualization.

Emoti-chairs

• Organized by Ryerson University’s Centre for Learning Technology and the Science of Music, Auditory Research and Technology lab, the chairs convert sound frequencies using a mapping system akin to the way the human cochlea works.

• The chair is a kind of full-body vibrator triggered by the frequency of individual notes in a musical composition or even random sounds.