Orchestral Conducting in Virtual Reality

Abstract

Orchestral conducting is a complex task, and learning to conduct well requires thorough practice. However, live training with a real orchestra is difficult to obtain, especially for beginners. To bridge this gap, we built the Virtual Reality Conducting system (VRC), a virtual reality system in which a user conducts a simulated orchestra.

VRC detects the user’s hand movements and algorithmically infers fundamental conducting gestures, such as timekeeping and accent signaling, with the use of carefully fine-tuned parameters. In turn, VRC adjusts the orchestra’s produced sound, modeling a real-life orchestra’s response as best as possible. VRC is designed to encourage good conducting habits, especially as instructed by pedagogy for beginners.

Trials demonstrate that VRC is effective in providing beginners with helpful, practical training in real-life conducting. Still, VRC has potential areas for improvement, especially in enabling users to realistically slow down the orchestra. VRC also illuminates interesting phenomena, especially regarding gestures and detection, that vary across pieces of different speeds and styles.