A piano playing robot has been revealed which can play faster than any human -- but then again, he does have the benefit of having 19 fingers.

Teotronico is said to be the only robot in the world capable of simultaneously singing and playing the piano while judging if an audience is impressed.

Created by boffins in Italy for a cost of £3,000, the musical bot is said to have 19 fingers because it is the ideal number for covering any melody or song.

As he plays, cameras in his eyes allow him to view an audience and interact with them, changing his choice of song if they don't look like they are enjoying themselves.

Makers say Teotronico has performed at a number of private parties where he has been a hit with guests.

It also sounds like a robot...

wow thats fast. that'd be the day when i could play like that.

Ha ha, he (it) is wearing a smoking! Well, you should be well dressed when performing, even if you are a robot.

I'm used to being outplayed by 5 year olds. But it's sad to be outplayed by a machine.

This is just a player machine, right? It looked to me like the "fingers" were just hologram images and not actually pressing down on the keys.

Not as good as a player machine, since there don't seem to be any dynamics. Looks like the "fingers" are clear plastic. The hands don't shift side to side so that's why there are 19 fingers. The repertoire would be pretty limited.

So I don't think we're in any danger of being replaced as players by this machine...

Sam

Amusing, but I hope that robot doesn't quit his day job.

Impressive

Hurray for human ingenuity but who needs yet another machine? Especially one that plays (bad) music. I'd still rather spend my time sweating at learning to play the piano than listen to that contraption.

A real advance would be an interface that connects my brain to a piano, this way I could play anything that I would care to imagine In the meantime, give me a good robot that does dishes, vacuums, does the wash, cleans the windows and takes the garbage out. THAT would at least be useful and maybe even entertaining!

John

There was a similar device in the early 20th century called the "Vorsetzer". It didn't have a humanoid appearance, it had 88 fingers, and played analog recordings that were made on a piano that was rigged with carbon rods dipping into mercury. That gave it dynamics.

When sometimes ago i used to playing this pianos with different kinds of theme taking i realized this is more then me well i like its.

Yeah, but can he sight-read?

What distinguishes humans from machines is the emotion.

Yeah, and like Victor Borge ol' Wile E. Coyote here would slam the lid shut on ALL those fingers, and teach that CP30 some respect. "Tin Man," indeed.

Pat

He's not doing the octaves.

Gee, the poor guy's only got 19 fingers. Give him a break.

No, it's actually playing.
If you look closely (I've got a 42" monitor so that helps) his "fingers" are actually clear Plexiglas that do press the keys but the annoying purple lights that flash on and off as each one moves makes it hard to see what is actually happening.

His fingers remind me of thoses kids sneakers that light up when they run. Those bug the crap out of me too!

I can download the song from iTunes for $.99, and probably get it free somewhere else. I have some great speakers attached to my computer too. Why would I spend $3000 on a mutant robot that can't use a sustain pedal or play a decent repertoire?


On a more serious tone, I still think they are doing it wrong. A better analogue for the human hand uses pneumatic artificial muscles, and it is much more responsive and capable of fine details. It's more difficult to make and the pneumatic part can be particularly difficult because it need a lightweight, quiet air compressor. Nonetheless, if you want a robot that plays piano like a human, then try to do it right. A computer IS theoretically capable of playing better than a human due to speed, precision, and extra fingers. But making a robot, rather than a software program, is very inefficient.

There was a "Cops" type TV show where they were chasing a kid wearing those at night. He almost got away because the first cop nearly fell down laughing..... ;-)

Well, it's refreshing to know that when it comes to playing the piano, humans are still far superior to robots.

Robots do excel at being cheap, so you get what you pay for. This charming 6-year-old, with her mishaps, tempo problems and all, no doubt has cost her parents more than the maker of that robot, and will continue to cost exponentially more, but the experience is priceless. Even with all the mistakes, I still prefer her rendition than the robot.