In order to reach a truly new audience, we decided to target a group of people who never listened to classical music in all their lives: the 80.000 deaf people in Germany. We wanted them to somehow experience classical music too. Since it couldn’t be through sound, we decided to use touch sensations instead.

That’s how the idea of the Sound Shirt was born – a wearable device that translates music into nuanced vibrations in real-time.

Researching the technology, we discovered that wearable tech design studio CuteCircuit had previously worked on a similar project where a shirt was used to send virtual hugs to a remote person. So we teamed up with CuteCircuit and together adapted their technology to our special needs.

The Sound Shirt could not be any easier to use. All the user has to do is sit down and enjoy the experience.

And that’s exactly what they do: In a first field test, several deaf people tried it and were amazed by this new kind of musical experience. Their overwhelmingly positive feedback convinced us to make the Sound Shirt available for deaf people at all our future concerts.

This is how it works: The sound from eight different types of instruments (violins, double bass, horns, etc.) is picked up by microphones on stage. A multi-channel audio interface delivers the sound to a computer where custom software translates the sound into data. The data is sent wirelessly to the Sound Shirt using a Q antenna. Sewn-in to the fabric of the shirt are 16 micro actuators that vibrate with the exact intensity of the music. Additionally sewn-in LED lights enhance the overall experience.

The results so far are several deaf people who have experienced a live concert of the Junge Symphoniker Hamburg. That alone already makes this idea a success. Of course we will use the shirt at all future concerts to let as many deaf people as possible have this unique experience. We are also considering producing even more shirts so that we can invite more than one deaf person per concert.

We expect strong media coverage once the Sound Shirt is officially announced. After all, it has the potential to change the lives of deaf people for the better.

For now, the Sound Shirt will be available exclusively at our concerts which will promote the Junge Symphoniker Hamburg not just among the deaf but also among the hearing fans of classical music. We expect ticket sales to go up significantly as a direct result of this idea.