In 2024, I completed a PhD that explored how remote musical collaborators might overcome the latency challenges of Wide Area Networks (WANs) to perform rhythmically syncopated music together in real time. This research forms the theoretical and practical foundation of Telemidi, the system I developed to facilitate Telematic Music Performance (TMP) using MIDI as the primary data type for musical exchange.
The Central Problem
Musicians working across geographic distances encounter a persistent obstacle: latency. Even minor delays in data transmission can disrupt the entrainment and nuance of rhythmic interplay. While some research focuses on reducing latency, the physical constraints of internet infrastructure make complete elimination impractical. Instead, my hypothesis explored how musical systems might function by accepting latency and designing around it, an approach labelled as Latency Accepting Solutions (LAS).
The Aim
The research aimed to develop a Telemidi TMP system capable of producing Pulse-Based Music (PBM), genres defined by stable metre and syncopation, in real-time collaboration over the Internet. This required implementing a suite of LAS within distributed, synchronised Digital Audio Workstations (DAWs), and designing for telepresence: the sensation of cohabiting a shared musical space despite physical separation.
The Questions
Two guiding questions shaped the research:
- What design principles enable a TMP system to synchronise remote nodes, empower musical options, and deliver a sense of simultaneity for observers?
- How can Telemidi mitigate the perception of latency while enabling the co-creation of rhythmically rich PBM?
The Methodology
I adopted a mixed-methods, practice-led approach, comprising:
– A longitudinal review of literature on time perception, telepresence, and network music
– An iterative performance process across 90+ sessions (known as SHOALZ) between remote performers using evolving Telemidi builds
– Autoethnographic analysis of system outputs, participant feedback, and media artefacts
This cyclical routine aligned with Ascott’s notion that “in Telematic art, there is no creation without participation”.
Key Findings
The project revealed a series of strategies to reduce the perception of latency and enhance musical outcomes:
– MIDI’s low bandwidth footprint made it ideal for real-time TMP, supporting both music and expressive control data
– NTP-synchronised clocks and local MAX devices were used to align DAW play-head activity, helping establish a shared temporal foundation
– Loop-based structures allowed messages a window of up to 2,400 ms (at 100bpm) to arrive and still remain musically in phase; a key component of the Telemidi LAS strategy
– The use of remote servers, particularly in Singapore, reduced effective network distances by up to 30%, delivering significant latency reductions (e.g. 150ms down to 117ms)
– Visualising MIDI events in VR environments enabled immersive audience engagement and a dramaturgical framing of performance actions, even with simple two-dimensional streams
A highlight was a one-off collaboration between Rwandan musicians and Canadian pipe organists, which illustrated Telemidi’s adaptability across culture, instrumentation and geography. This event served as a “stress-test” for the system, confirming its feasibility even in unpredictable, low-rehearsal contexts.
Conclusion
This PhD research demonstrated that Telematic Music Performance can support rhythmically complex, pulse-based genres, overcoming latency not by eradicating it, but by intelligently designing around it. The key was to shift from latency reduction to latency acceptance, through loop-based architecture, waveform curation, MIDI-driven DSP, and a deeply iterative performer workflow.
Telemidi now stands as a proven framework for immersive, globally distributed musical collaboration. It opens pathways for new creative domains including live performance, music education, tele-wellness, gaming, and digital diplomacy.
As telepresence becomes increasingly relevant in our globally connected, post-pandemic world, TMP offers more than a workaround, it provides a new aesthetic and technological paradigm.
