• Swindon & Wiltshire Property
• Thursday April 3 2025
• Author Name: Peter Davison

Ariana Grande’s groundbreaking ‘musical gloves’ to be further developed in Bristol

Musical gloves used by chart-topping musicians including Ariana Grande are to be further developed at a new laboratory in Bristol.

The Side To Side singer was an early adopter of MiMu gloves and used the wearable technology on her 2015 tour.

The gloves allow artists to expressively create music through hand gestures. The next stage of the research will develop high-precision sensors within the gloves that will sense a wearer’s interactions with physical objects.

The technology was developed by Tom Mitchell, professor of audio and music interaction at UWE, who will be joined in his latest research by Dr Dominic Potts.

The technology will be developed at a new £3.6 million laboratory that has opened at UWE Bristol.

The Bridge Studios brings together two of the region’s growth-driving sectors – creative arts and technology.

Researchers will make new advances in AI, VR, motion capture, immersive audio and collaborative robotics at the facility.

Steve West and lead researchers

The new lab is spread over 500 sq m on UWE Bristol’s Frenchay campus and features the latest collaborative robotic arms and advanced robotic technology which will be used for research into data-driven art, craft, design and architecture.

A robotic fabrication lab within The Bridge Studios includes a multi-directional three-metre robotic arm which can be used for large-scale 3D printing in architecture and building design.

Another standout feature within the facility is an immersive studio with a 7x4m LED screen, which is at the core of the lab’s advanced research capabilities in virtual and immersive technologies.

Motion capture technology will provide highly accurate tracking for human, robot and objects for use in animation or interactive artworks. The Bridge Studios also offers space for exhibitions and performances.

Tavs Jorgensen, associate professor and academic lead for the new facility, said: “The Bridge Studios provides a unique opportunity to bring together skills from diverse research disciplines and explore how knowledge from within creative disciplines can cross-fertilise with research and innovation within science and technology.”

Images: Tom Sparey