Sonification with musical characteristics: a path guided by user engagement

Abstract

Sonification with musical characteristics can engage users, and this dynamic carries value as a mediator between data and human perception, analysis, and interpretation. A user engagement study has been designed to measure engagement levels from conditions within primarily melodic, rhythmic, and chordal contexts. This paper reports findings from the melodic portion of the study, and states the challenges of using musical characteristics in sonifications via the perspective of form and function – a long standing debate in Human-Computer Interaction. These results can guide the design of more complex sonifications of multivariable data suitable for real life use.