Workshop: Bela - an embedded platform for ultra-low latency audio and sensor processing

A workshop on Bela - the embedded platform for ultra-low latency audio and sensor processing - with Andrew McPherson from Queen Mary University of London.

Cabels and things on a table. Photo.

Beaglebone with Bela cape and speakers.

About the workshop

In this introductory workshop you will learn the basics of the Bela system, and it how can be programmed directly from your browser. You will learn how to create sound and music, and will be able to it out on a set of actively, augmented acoustic guitars equipped with Belas, actuators and sensors.

About Bela

Bela is an embedded system for real-time audio processing with ultra-low latency. Based on the BeagleBone Black single-board computer and featuring a custom hardware and software environment, Bela integrates audio processing and sensor connectivity in a single high-performance package. Bela is an ideal platform for musicians, instrument designers, audio enthusiasts and interactive artists. Bela was designed for audio hardware projects, but it doesn't stop there. Bela is ideal for any project that requires ultra-fast processing of multiple streams of data for maximum responsiveness. Bela is the core of many electronic musical instruments, but has also been used for kinetic sculpture, interactive installations, even a game played in an analogue oscilloscope.

About Andrew McPherson

Man with short dark hair. Portrait. Photo.Andrew McPherson is Reader in Digital Media at Queen Mary, University of London. He is active as a composer and researcher in augmented instruments, new performance interfaces and expressive performance modeling.

Published June 14, 2017 1:58 PM - Last modified June 30, 2020 1:13 PM