Piano Tiles is an interactive installation developed in TouchDesigner, where players trigger piano tones by touching colored tiles. The game is projected onto a wall and offers both visual and musical feedback.
Piano Tiles is an interactive installation where movement, sound, and projection merge into a playful audiovisual experience. Players trigger piano tones by touching colored tiles on a wall, causing the corresponding key to light up—creating immediate visual and auditory feedback.
The project was fully developed in TouchDesigner, with me responsible for the entire process: from concept development to technical execution and on-site implementation. I programmed both the interactive elements and the visual projection.
By making hand movements respond in real time and optimizing the patches, I created a smooth and responsive installation that invites active play and exploration.
The project started with the development of an interactive concept that combines music, movement, and projection. I translated this idea into a technical setup in TouchDesigner. I experimented with camera input, color recognition, and hand-tracking—laying the foundation for the interaction between player and installation.
In this phase, I built the visual system that dynamically projects colored tiles onto the wall and responds to touch. By detecting reductions in incoming light, each hand movement triggers the pressing of a piano key. Every gesture activates both a sound and a visual lighting effect. By tightly linking image and sound, the installation becomes intuitive and immersive for the user.
After the base system was working, I focused on optimizing the installation. By reducing latency and streamlining parts in TouchDesigner, I made the interaction faster and smoother. The result is a responsive, vibrant experience that encourages players to actively engage.
The idea for Piano Tiles was inspired by popular piano tutorials on YouTube. The challenge was always to replicate the complex tones in real life. This sparked the design of an interactive installation that makes piano playing more accessible and engaging.
The entire visual and interactive system of Piano Tiles was built in TouchDesigner. The setup detects hand movements and activates the colored tiles on the wall, providing players with immediate visual and musical feedback.
A projector was used to display the dynamic piano tiles onto the wall. Players wore black gloves, allowing the system to accurately track their movements and making the interaction smoother and more precise.
In the future, I aim to expand Piano Tiles into a stair projection: a pilot where interactive piano tiles are projected not only on a wall, but also onto stair steps. Ideally, this installation would be designed for use in the dark—either in public outdoor spaces or indoor stairwells.
How interactive projection and sound can subtly influence behavior—transforming stairs into spaces for movement, safety, and play.
