Music Accessibility
We think everyone should be able to experience the joy of making music.
We brought together music accessibility experts from all over the world to meet regularly & discuss how to make digital musical instruments more accessible.
MIDI.Org Articles on Music Accessibility
Amenote Aptiplay at CSUN Accessibility Conference
AmeNote recently introduced AptiPlay at the CSUN Assistive Technology Conference, presenting a new approach to accessible music creation for people with mobility disabilities. AptiPlay is a music controller designed to make it easier for individuals with limited movement to actively participate in making music. AptiPlay 8P Music Controller Turn any Switch or Analog Input into…
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UniMIDI Hub at CSUN Accessibilty Conference
Emanuele “Lele” Parravinci from Audio Modeling joined The MIDI Association at the CSUN Accessibility Conference 2026 to show off the newest features of the 2024 MIDI Association Software Prototype category winner, UniMIDI Hub. UniMIDI Hub is an innovative software solution that breaks down barriers to music performance.Developed by Audio Modeling in collaboration with Manuele Maestri and Musica Senza Confini, UniMIDI Hub turns…
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2026 CSUN Assistive Technology Conference Report
For three days The MIDI Association participated in the CSUN Assistive Technology conference at the Anaheim Marriott. It was a wonderful chance to connect with people from the accessibility community and we learned a lot. Emanuele Parravinci from Audio Modeling, Mike Kent from Amenote and Athan Billias from MIDI2Marketing manned the booth. Haim Kairy, co-chair…
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The MIDI Association at the 41st CSUN Assistive Technology Conference
MIDI Association — Booth 1312 Dates: March 11–13, 2026Location: Anaheim Marriott, Anaheim, CA, USA The 41st CSUN Assistive Technology Conference is the largest event of its kind worldwide — a global gathering of accessibility leaders, researchers, developers, educators, and advocates committed to innovation and empowerment. CSUN serves as a vital platform for authentic representation, cross-cultural…
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The MIDI Association at Music & Drama Education Expo UK (MDEE 2026): members powering accessible, modern music learning
The Music & Drama Education Expo returns to London on 12–13 February 2026 at the Business Design Centre, bringing together educators, publishers, instrument makers, and music-technology innovators focused on improving arts education for all learners. At this year’s show, several MIDI Association corporate member companies and members of The MIDI Association special interest groups for:…
NAMM 2026 Wrap Up
As usual, NAMM 2026 was a blur of activity at The MIDI Association booth. We hosted 21 events over three days at our booth and participated in many Tec Tracks and A3E sessions as well. We know this article has a LOT of information in it. But take your time and read through everything. Maybe…
pBone Music and Yamaha Music UK Host Music Hub Conference
There was so much going on in January for Music Accessibility. The month started with the CES show-CES Show report on Accessibility. We followed up with a year in review article about Music Accessibility On January 15, SoundwithoutSight featured Lachi from RAMPD.org Then on January 16, PBone Music and Yamaha Music UK hosted an accessibility…
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The MIDI Association Music Accessibility Initiative: A Year of Demos, Partnerships, and Practical Progress
Over the past year, The MIDI Association’s Music Accessibility work has focused on something very concrete: getting more people to the “I’m making music” moment—faster, with fewer barriers, and with better pathways for developers and manufacturers to build accessibility into products from day one. At the center of that effort is the Music Accessibility Standard…
CES 2026: MIDI Gear to Watch—and the Accessibility Tech That Can Change How We Make Music
CES 2026 ran January 6–9, 2026 in Las Vegas, and once again the show floor was full of ideas that matter to music creators: new ways to control software, new approaches to wireless “instant play,” and (most importantly) a fast-growing wave of accessibility-first products—Braille, tactile graphics, haptics, smart glasses, and autonomous navigation—built to help more…
What TiME is It?
It seems fitting that on the same day we are celebrating David Kusek from Passport Designs and Berklee Online that we would announce a new partnership with TiME UK. David was so influential in technology in music education throughout his career. There are currently two Technology In Music Education organizations. One is TI:ME which is…
RAMPD + MASSIG: Turning Music Accessibility Into Real-World Standards
When we talk about “music accessibility,” we’re not talking about a single feature—or a single community. We’re talking about the real-world ability for disabled music creators and professionals to build careers, collaborate at the highest levels, and use music technology with confidence and independence. Why this new relationship matters The MIDI Association’s Music Accessibility Standard…
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The MIDI Association At Audio Developers Conference 2025
After the whirlwind tour around the world at Music China, The Kakehashi Foundation, Tokyo Gakki Fair and Music Tectonics, The MIDI Association MASSIG was well represented at Audio Developers Conference in Bristol, UK. Workshop 5: Interactive Panel: Accessibility in Audio Tech Tim Yates from Drake Music and Liza Bec discuss the social model of accessibility…
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The MIDI Association at Music Tectonics 2025
After a week in China and a week in Japan, we got on a plane headed back to the US on November 3. The plane was three hours late taking off so we left at 11 pm and arrived at LAX at 5 pm the same day. Rather than heading home, we went straight to…
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The MIDI Association at Tokyo Gakki Expo 2025
The Tokyo Gakki Fair was held on November 1 and 2 at The Science Museum 1F Exhibition Hall 〒102-0091 Kitanomaru Park, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 2-1. The MIDI Association had a booth that featured the winners of the 2025 MIDI Innovation Awards. You might wonder why the featured image for this article is a traditional gate to…
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MUSIC ACCESSIBILITY AT MUSIC CHINA
We had a lot going on at Music China, but one of the most popular areas was the Music Accessibility demo. The Filisia Cosmos dots, an AFK Audio Drum Beam, a ThisIsNoise MIDI Blaster and an Arcana Strum were all connected to the Connect Through MIDI software created by Ableton Drummer’s Tobi Hunke to showcase…
Music China 2025 Day 1 Report
The MIDI Association has been coming to Music China for many years, but each time we come we are inspired and invigorated by the energy around innovation and new technology here. The Music X Stage and the MIDI Association booth next to it are at the center of that innovation. We went in early before…
The MIDI Association at Music China 2025
The MIDI Association has a lot of plans for Music China 2025. We will have a booth similar to what we had in 2024, but it will be in the new Hall N3. To give you some perspective each of the 16 Halls (W1-W5, E1-E7 and N 1-3)at Music China are about the same size…
SoundWithoutSight and Accessible Gaming
MIDI Association partner Soundwithoutsight are excited to announce their next Monthly Meet-up on Thursday 21, August 2025-a presentation and Q&A with the award winning and multi-credited accessibility consultant and gamer SightlessKombat who will share how audio innovations are improving access to gaming. You can click here to register for the event or on the button below. Register for…
The PhotoSYNTH and accessible music making
The Royal Society is a Fellowship of many of the world’s most eminent scientists and is the oldest scientific academy in continuous existence. For over three decades the Royal Society has opened the doors to its building in central London (6-9 Carlton House Terrace) and welcomed thousands of visitors to meet the researchers behind some…
Accessible Musical Instruments In The 2025 MIDI Innovation Awards
Three of the five winners of the 2024 MIDI Innovation Awards were clearly focused on accessibility -the Arcana Strum, the UniMIDI hub from Audio Modeling and GEP Contraption. In the 2025 MIDI Innovation Awards, there were 13 entries devoted to accessibility. Click on the button below to see them all or click on the images…
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