A hand drumming Dataset for Physical Modeling

Physical modeling is a proven technique for creating sounds with rich expressive potential, but the state of the art in control does not offer access to the whole of this potential. New developments in modeling algorithms are typically presented with single-point, idealized excitations where more complex ones would add vitality to the sounds produced. The 2D waveguide mesh, in particular, can be excited simultaneously at multiple points on a surface, like a physical drum by a hand. The authors present a synthesis system in which this control has been implemented using a 2D pressure sensor, resulting in sounds that capture the some of the salient qualities of hand drumming. A dataset of 2D force measurements from various hand drumming techniques is presented, to be used by researchers in physical modeling synthesis.