A pair of Scottish engineering students have created a 'one man ceilidh band' in a bid to get people dancing during lockdown.
Cameron Bennett and Neil Wood created the program as part of their University of Glasgow Masters project.
Cameron explained that the system, which is run using a Raspberry Pi, allows an accordion player to put on a full ceilidh solo by synthesizing backing music in real time off of a midi input from the accordion.
He said: "I've played the accordion from when I was around 7 years old and there was a strong presence of ceilidh music where I grew up in Oban.
"I've played at a few ceilidhs and thought that this would be a useful addition and could help small ceilidh bands have a fuller sound.
"It just so happens that it has also been a great way to play during lockdown too."
The pair, who have been sharing the results on Twitter (@OneManCeilidh) and Youtube added that the idea is that the system should be able to adapt to the person playing as they perform - rather than just be a predefined backing track.
Created to be free and open-source, the OneManCeilidhBand software uses sensors built into the left hand side of the accordion to understand what buttons are being pressed and when. Cameron explained: "From these sensors, the OneManCeilidhBand can work out which chords have been played and adapt each of the supporting instruments to play in the correct key.
"The backing band is made up of four instruments: piano, bass guitar, drumkit, and a second accordion. Each of these instruments has an arrangement designed for different ceilidh dances and is made to intertwine with other instruments to create the impression of a coherent band.
"These arrangements are updated in real-time as the user plays in order to represent the current key of the music and synchronise all the instruments."
Cameron added that anyone interested in the program should check out their university's Electronics and Music course.
