Adam Somers, a passionate musician, has been working on amazing Leap Motion applications for many months. His AirHarp and AirBeats instrument apps have been covered by Engadget, Dvice, CNET Australia, Hackaday and more.  We spoke with Adam back in February (see video), and today we have an update on what he’s been doing lately.

This weekend Adam will be at the Bay Area Maker Faire to talk about his work with Leap Motion’s technology.

5 Questions with Adam Somers, Developer of AirHarp and AirBeats

1. What are you looking forward to most about Maker Faire this weekend?

Maker Faire always hosts amazing and unexpected wonders from the DIY community.  I’m looking forward to seeing what all the unsung mad scientists have been up to this year, as well as seeing some familiar faces.

2. You’re talking about a new way to make music – what are the key points to your session? 

I will be discussing how the Leap Motion Controller allows for natural and expressive control of music and sound.  There are many electronic input devices out there, each with its own set of limitations and barriers to entry.  These limitations will be discussed along with how they can be overcome with Leap-enabled software.  And, of course, I will demo AirHarp and AirBeats.

3. Why are you so excited to work on applications for Leap Motion?

Leap Motion is bringing us closer than ever to having natural control over our computers.  Along with this paradigm shift will come an entirely new category of applications, and I’m doing what I can to help define just what the future of computing will look like.  What could be more exciting that that?

4. What’s new since we last caught up with you in the developer profile video?

Since then I’ve been hard at work on AirHarp and a brand new application called AirBeats—a virtual drum machine that lets you make beats in the air.  Engadget caught up with me at a recent event for a sneak preview, which you can see at http://engt.co/ZVBPpV.  Attendees of Maker Faire this Sunday will get to see a new and improved preview of AirBeats.

5. How do you envision AirHarp and AirBeats being used when Leap Motion ships?

 These applications have been designed with ease-of-use in mind, so anybody will be able to play beats and melodies and have a great time without any prior music training.  For the more experienced producer, you can absolutely use these apps to create a wide variety of music.  With AirBeats, you can record professional sounding beats in a variety of musical styles, from HipHop to Trance to Dubstep, and you can export your creations for use in music production software.  With AirHarp, you can tune the instrument to the scale of your choosing or play a chord progression and sing along.

 If you’re heading to the faire on Sunday, check out Adam’s session:

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