We explore a variety of design criteria applicable to the creation of collaborative interfaces for musical experience. The main factor common to the design of most collaborative interfaces for novices is that musical control is highly restricted, which makes it possible to easily learn and participate in the collective experience. Balancing this tradeoff is a key concern for designers, as this happens at the expense of providing an upward path to virtuosity with the interface. We attempt to identify design considerations exemplifiedbyasamplingofrecent collaborative devices primarily oriented toward novice interplay. It is our intention to provide a non-technical overview of design issues inherent in configuring multiplayer experiences, particularly for entry-level players.

This article describes experiments conducted with the system and 3- to 5-year-old children. We highlight several dimensions of the study pertaining to music education, including attention span, spontaneous development of playing modes, and capacity to listen analytically. We describe very encouraging preliminary results and stress the importance of using reflective interactive systems for triggering musical interest in children and creating stimulating, nonsupervised music learning environments. We conclude by setting up our research in the context of the theory of flow as an optimal experience.