Digital drumming: a study of co-located, highly coordinated, dyadic collaboration

Collaborative drumming is a creative human activity that requires a high degree of coordination among the participants. In this study, inexperienced drummer and experienced drummer participants were paired with a computer or experienced human drummer counterpart and given the task of producing musical rhythms on the fly. We found differing patterns of music production across the computer and human conditions. Participants intentionally and unintentionally assumed leadership roles depending on the dyad dynamic. Also noted were differences in the needs of inexperienced and experienced participants for visual and verbal cues for coordination. In our study, participants did not treat computers as other humans, but seemed to engage a more complex evaluation of the situation. This study contributes to the growing body of knowledge on how people respond to and interact with technology to accomplish complex, collaborative tasks.