This is the story of a MEX experiment in audio design, where we blindfolded 100 conference participants and played them three original compositions – each a minute in length – by Peter ‘pdx’ Drescher.

Participants were allowed to briefly remove their blindfolds between each composition to write or sketch their instant reaction.

It was part of a larger (and ongoing) effort – MEX Pathway #9 – to encourage digital designers to strive beyond purely visual interactions and tap into additional dimensions such as sound and tactility.

Here’s what happened and some reflections on what it might mean for designers…

The responses were collated into three separate ‘walls’, which remained present during both days of the MEX/9 conference in May 2011. Participants were encouraged to listen to the compositions again at sound stations placed beside each of the walls, while reviewing what others had written about their experiences.

Each of the compositions may be listened to below and is followed by a selection of the participants’ original reactions.

The experiment prompted several observations:

1. Certain themes emerged consistently with each track, suggesting elements of the audio were universally understood. Sometimes these were sounds associated with familiar reference points (such as the ‘helicopter’ in Collage 1), but also strayed into the conceptual (e.g. the ‘forest’ feel identified in Collage 1) or specific sound characteristics (e.g. the tempo of Collage 3).
2. However, each composition always prompted a unique element to the participants’ responses, often related to how the sound reminded them of a personal experience (e.g. ‘finishing half of Brussels Marathon), a specific artist (e.g. Manu Chao) or time period (e.g. 1980s).
3. The range of interpretations was astounding, perhaps helped by the knowledge that responses would be used anonymously. From sitting in the same conference room at the same time, the audio prompted these 100 participants to encounter different feelings ranging across: temperature, colour, stress levels, physical environments, social context, memories, sports, music and many more. It is hard to imagine a visual experience resulting in the same variety.
4. We might, therefore, conclude audio has the potential to reach users at a deeper emotional level, but presents higher risk of varied interpretation. This would suggest it would be most effectively applied to digital experience elements where ambiguous interpretation would not cause critical errors, but a level of playful engagement could significantly enhance the users’ perception of the overall experience.

MEX has revisited the Pathway #9 theme of audible and multi-sensory design on numerous occasions since this experiment and will do so again at the MEX/16 conference on 12th/13th October. Peter Law and Tom Pursey of Flying Object will deliver a creative session in which participants learn how they combine multiple visual, audible, tactile and even taste and smell sensations into digital experiences for the likes of the Tate Modern gallery.

For further MEX research on this theme, try:

• Episode 3 of the MEX Design Talk podcast, including an interview with Peter Law on multi-sensory design
• Paul Bennun & Nicky Birch’s MEX/12 talk on audio design in mobile UX
• Ed Maklouf’s MEX/9 talk on natural interfaces
• ‘Whispering to the future – a tale of navigating with Google Now‘, Marek Pawlowski’s 2014 essay on voice UIs
• Jim Kosem’s MEX/10 talk on audible UIs
• Charlotte Magnusson’s MEX/11 talk on audible and haptic UIs

With special thanks to Peter ‘pdx’ Drescher for his original compositions and contributions at MEX/9.