ROLI‘s Seaboard GRAND gives us a new take on the piano and a glimpse of music when it meets the future.
It looks like a keyboard, but it is something much, much more. Made for experimental musicians, the Seaboard has a wavelike, pliable surface that allows the user to manipulate the sound using your fingers, which means you have control over notes, pitch, volumes and timbre. The rubbery surface is key in allowing the alterations to occur – moving your finger from side to side changes the pitch, or you can change the volume by moving the key up and down. Glissando ribbons also run along the top and bottom of the board.
Each piece is made in London, and comes in three different versions. The Seaboard GRAND Studio, Seaboard GRAND Stage, and the GRAND Limited First Edition, varying in size with the latter being the largest and containing 88 keys. To use it, you just need to plug in some headphones or connect it to an amp, instead of using external devices.
