The Commercialisation of Interactive Music

2015年，AHRC资助了一个名为“数字音乐转型”的研究项目。该项目开发了一种全新的音乐发布格式-- variPlay，它将专辑打包为具有实时交互播放功能的移动的iPhone应用程序（一个应用程序）。这项创新技术允许用户以以前不可能的方式操纵音乐并与之互动。此外，该格式还包含了丰富的媒体，如歌词、照片、制作人员名单和歌曲/艺术家信息。该应用程序提供了许多不同的互动模式。例如，VariPlay允许听众以流畅和创造性的方式决定和操纵正在播放的歌曲的类型。一首由标准流行摇滚乐器（鼓、吉他、合成器、弦乐和人声）组成的歌曲可能会被实时操作，以电子配音、卡佩拉、民谣或多种风格的混合来播放。同样，听众可以操纵乐器，去除人声，隔离鼓，或创建自己喜欢的录音混合。此外，variPlay可以自行决定如何改变播放，让听众在每次播放的给定歌曲中进行独特的旅程。听众可以根据自己的情绪或喜好体验音乐，同时也可以探索艺术家比传统播放平台更深层次的创造性视野，这反过来又带来了一个新的和创新的商业主张。后续资助项目的调查人员是西伦敦大学的贾斯汀·帕特森教授和威斯敏斯特大学的罗布·图尔森教授。两人都是经验丰富的研究人员、音乐制作人和软件开发人员。他们现在已经与主要唱片公司华纳音乐集团（WMG）合作，推出了三位知名艺术家的应用程序，WMG将利用其全球影响力来推广该格式。WMG计划在该项目交付期间发布一个特别版的variPlay应用程序，其中包括著名古典作曲家克劳德·德彪西的作品，其他流派的其他知名艺术家将在适当的时候得到确认。因此，这个新项目将最大限度地发挥之前研究的影响力，并覆盖全球大量观众，使他们能够塑造他们最喜欢的艺术家的声音，同时为艺术家提供与粉丝更深入接触的新模式。该技术还为唱片公司提供有关用户如何响应和使用variPlay格式的数据。例如，如果大多数听众似乎更喜欢某首歌曲的原声版本，未来的艺术家开发和营销可以以前所未有的方式对此做出反应，从而为艺术家提供职业发展机会和未来的货币化。最初的研究以艺术家Daisy和The Dark的试点应用程序发布结束;红色星球EP。这个后续项目涉及到该应用程序的技术“外壳”，并重新填充新的WMG艺术家的音乐，图像和文本。这三个版本针对不同的消费者群体，以探索哪些受众对这种格式最有反应，以及相关的定价。此外，资金还用于支持吸引媒体的发布活动，并帮助宣传新的发布，以进一步提高公众意识，从而产生影响。该项目最终将为variPlay创建一个可持续的商业模式，吸引更多的商业资金，并在随后成立一家分拆公司，以促进进一步的发布。因此，该项目将定义一种变革性的数字商业模式，可能会重振全球音乐产业。在这里下载适用于iPhone和iPad的红色星球EP试点应用程序：http://bit.ly/RedPlanetApp

In 2015, the AHRC funded a research project called Transforming Digital Music under its Digital Transformations call. This project developed a radical new music-release format - variPlay, which packaged an album as mobile iPhone application (an app) with real-time interactive playback capabilities. This innovative technology allows users to manipulate and interact with music in ways that had not previously been possible. In addition, the format packaged rich media such as lyrics, photographs, production credits and song/artist information.The app offers a number of different modes of interactivity. For example, variPlay allows the listener to decide on and manipulate the genre of the song being played, in a smooth and creative manner. A song consisting of standard pop-rock instrumentation (drums, guitar, synth, strings and vocals) might be manipulated in real-time to instead play as electronic dubstep, a capella, folk-acoustic, or a blend of styles. Equally the listener can manipulate instruments, removing the vocals, isolating the drums, or creating their own preferred mix of the recording. In addition, variPlay can make its own intelligent decisions about how to vary playback, taking the listener on a unique journey through a given song on each play. The listener can experience the music based on their mood or preference, whilst also exploring a deeper creative vision of the artist than can be achieved with conventional playback platforms, which in turn brings a new and innovative commercial proposition.The Follow-on-Funding project investigators are Prof. Justin Paterson of the University of West London, and Prof. Rob Toulson of the University of Westminster. Both are experienced researchers, music producers and software developers. They have now teamed up with major record label, Warner Music Group (WMG) to launch the app with three high-profile artists from its roster, and WMG will use its global leverage to promote the format. WMG plan to release a special edition variPlay app featuring the works of renowned classical composer Claude Debussy during the delivery of this project, with other high-profile artists from other genres to be confirmed in due course. This new project will therefore maximise the impact of the previous research and reach huge worldwide audiences, bringing them the ability to shape the sound of their favourite artists, whilst simultaneously offering the artists a new mode of deeper engagement with their fans.The technology also provides the record company with data on how users are responding to, and using the variPlay format. If for instance the bulk of listeners appear to prefer acoustic versions of a given song, future artist development and marketing can react to this in a way never previously possible, thus unlocking career development opportunities for the artist and future monetisation.The original research concluded with a pilot app-release by the artist Daisy and The Dark; the Red Planet EP. This follow-on project involves taking the technological 'shell' of that app and repopulating it with the music, images, and text of the new WMG artists. The three releases are targeted to different sections of the consumer demographic in order to explore which audiences best respond to such a format, and indeed the associated pricing. This approach will inform future releases.In addition, the funding is supporting launch events that will draw in the media, and help to publicise the new releases in order to further increase public awareness, and hence impact. The project will culminate in the creation of a sustainable business model for variPlay, attracting further commercial funding and later forming a spin-out company to precipitate further releases. This project will therefore define a transformational digital business model that might reinvigorate the global music industry.Download the pilot Red Planet EP app for iPhone and iPad here: http://bit.ly/RedPlanetApp