Graham, 

The demonstrator system of the "Performance DMO" work that you propose is a great idea -- of course, I would say that because Steve Benford, his students and my team have done research in that direction for the past 2 years :-) The focus was not on DMO but on the experiences of amateur musicians. However, addressing the DMO issue is inevitable when creating a working prototype. 



We have considered two possible approaches: 

- creating a (new, dedicated) platform for amateur musicians 

OR

- creating a dashboard for connecting existing services that musician use in their practices (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, band websites, band's media sharing facilities - Dropbox, local media storage - across personal devices and offline storage, etc.). 

On top of that, one can begin to invent additional mechanisms for engagement in the form of apps, to support all the phases of musicians' performing activities. 



Here 'performing' refers to various aspects of the artists' engagement, 

- from  coordination of activities and realization of ideas with fellow musicians, 

- to networking with stakeholders in the music scene (venue organizers, event promoters, creatives who produce and sell 'memorabilia', etc.) 

- to communicating with FFFans  (family, friends, and fans) who comprise the amateurs' target audience. 



The question 'what DMO is' is then pragmatically resolved based on the requirements of the use scenarios and the specification of the system. There is no guarantee that such a DMO will be useful in other scenarios but as long as we ensure that the model and the supporting architecture are extendible, we will be in good shape. 



Steve and I can share information about the analyses of musicians' online activities and the mock-ups of specific applications we've considered for connecting with fans and fellow musicians. Since there are several layers to implement, we can then discuss the overall architecture and the division of work. 



Some of this research has been published in the CHI 2014 paper (enclosed). More detailed data analysis and prototypes are work in progress, started last summer and not yet published. 



Natasa



Natasa Milic-Frayling - Principal Researcher - Microsoft Research Cambridge UK - Tel: +44 1223 479 772



-----Original Message-----

From: Announcement list for FAST IMPACt [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Graham Klyne

Sent: 10 May 2015 12:35

To: [log in to unmask]

Subject: Re: digital music object



On 08/05/2015 11:35, Mark Sandler wrote:

> with thanks to max wilson and apologies for sitting on this for so long….

>

> max came up with the attached sketch/concept for DMOs at the oxford meeting.

>

> i’ve been meaning to share it for too long. we should use it to shape our ideas.

>

> thanks max



It just happens that I recently circulated a rough proposal for a DMO demonstrator to my Oxford colleagues, which I think meshes with the ideas that have been raised here in response to Max's thoughts.  Having been through some of these debates in the context of Research Objects (which arguably serve a similar role in research activity that DMOs serve for musical activity), I think it is helpful if we can talk in terms on concrete proposals rather than abstract descriptions, which I think it is very easy for people to interpret in ways that reflect what they expect to hear.



I also note that the project has been described as intending to proceed by way of demonstrations which can allow us to explore and develop our ideas.  In this spirit, I offer my suggestion more widely, with the following caveats and comments:



1. It's just a rough idea at this stage, not something that has been worked out in great detail.

2. It's a personal suggestion, and doesn't represent the views of my Oxford colleagues.

3. It is of limited scope w.r.t. the range of research proposed for FAST, but even so I think it illustrates points raised by Max about having "different value to different people", and also by Natasa that "digital media ≠ content files" (though not necessarily developing in the same direction).



...



So here is what I suggest as one possible DMO demonstrator:



# "Performance DMO" demonstrator proposal



I understand that Digital Music Objects (DMOs) act as a kind of "glue" layer to pull together other aspects of the project.  The "Performance DMO" is a suggestion to demonstrate such "glue" capabilities.



The "Performance DMO" was discussed in the brainstorming breakout session I attended at the FAST all hands meeting (not using that name), but was not presented as it was seen as being more complex to implement than the option our group eventually presented.  The group was tasked with coming up with ideas relating to musical performance, and the underlying idea was a suggestion for using digital technology to create a richer, less ephemeral connection between performers and their audiences.



This proposal is informed in part by my experiences of attending concerts by less well-known musicians, often given by ensembles of 1-5 performers and held in smaller local venues with an audience size in the range of 100-300 (e.g. 

Nettlebed Folk Club, Abingdon's Unicorn Theatre, Oxford's Holywell Music Room). 

  These performances are often given as part of a tour of 10-30 dates within a period of a couple of months or so.  Because these performances are relatively easy and inexpensive to access, I have often seen performers whose works I had very little prior exposure to.  The performers themselves seem to be using the concerts in part to promote themselves and their work.  Thus, I posit there is a desire on both sides to create a deeper connection between the performers and audiences.





## User stories



1. As an attendee of concerts by little-known musicians and bands, I would like to have access to information and recordings related to a performance I have attended so that I can further explore the music and its associations, with a view to possible purchase of recordings by the performers seen, or attending further performances by them.



2. As a "small-time" or "up-and-coming" performing professional musician, I would like to create a longer-lasting connection with the audiences who attend my performances, and encourage them to purchase recordings of my music or attend further performances.





## The proposal



Imagine that performance tickets are printed with (say) a QR code that links to an online resource that is a Digital Music Object.  Or, if concert bookings are processed online, an "e-ticket" could be a document that links to such an object.  The exact mechanism is not important, but I imagine it being integrated with the purchase and distribution of performance tickets.  The key is that each attendee receives a personal link or token that can be used online to access a Digital Music Object.



What does this DMO offer?  It could be like a personalised version of the performers' general web site, offering direct access to information and recordings that relate directly to the performance attended.  Here are some

possibilities:

- link to a downloadable and/or purchasable live recording of the performance attended (a kind of "official bootleg"?)

- a set list for the performance attended,

- for each composition on the set list, links to more detailed information; e.g., composer, performers and instruments, recording and performance history of the composition, information about variations, downloadable and/or purchasable recordings, sheet music, etc.

- more detailed information about the performers seen (recordings, compositions, other associations, links to other ensembles with which they have performed, etc.).

- "family tree" for the ensemble seen (past members, past recordings and general history).

- future performances by the performers seen

- future recordings to be released by the performers seen

- links to critical and/or scholarly reviews of the performance and performers' work

- sharable links to music samples that audience members can use to recommend the performers to their friends, etc.

- links to details of instruments used,

- links to settings used for keyboards, sound processing equipment, etc.



The online Digital Music Object could further be a dynamic entity, providing updated information about performers' future activities as and when they become known, or providing time-limited access to downloadable recordings.  It might also provide links to social networking features that would allow performance attendees to communicate with each other and/or the performers about their experience of and thoughts about the performance and related material.  Links might be provided to Wikipedia-like resources that can be used for crowdsourcing reviews of performances.





## Technical outline



Most of the Digital Music Object resources offered are based on existing technologies and platforms.  The "Performance DMO" would mainly be an aggregation of basic information and references to resources.  I expect we would build upon ideas developed for Research Objects (Linked data, ORE, annotations, etc.).





## Minimum viable product



I see a minimal viable product for a "Performance DMO" consisting of something like:



1. overview of the performance (who, where, when) 2. a list of compositions performed (title, composer, performers, etc.) 3. some feedback mechanism to allow audience feedback to the performers - this might be as simple as a "like" button, or allow more nuanced forms of feedback. 

  The DMO content might just be a (personalised?) link to an existing service.



...



Does something like this reflect any of the capabilities that people are expecting to be addressed by DMOs?



#g