London based sisters Hermon and Heroda Berhane who are deaf, have
come up with a new ‘Sound Shirt’ that claims to help deaf people experience
music. Created by London based Fashion Company ‘CuteCircuit’, the jacket has
not yet been introduced to India. But if it does, will come at a huge price
of over lakhs of rupees which is definitely not accessible to all.
For a deaf person, listening to music is impossible. But London based sisters
Hermon and Heroda Berhane have come up with
something innovative that claims to revolutionise the way deaf people
experiences music. Their latest Sound Shirt, that has been
created by CuteCircuit, a London based fashion company, is
definitely catching a lot of attention.
Both the Berhane sisters had lost the ability to hear at a very young age.
Since they were unable to experience the charm of music, the sisters decided
to do something on their own so that other people from their community also
gets a musical experience. That is what led them to create the ‘Sound Shirt’.
It has not yet been introduced in India. But if it does, will cost a huge
price. Reportedly, their price is over 3000 pound which means
over Rs 27 lakhs.
Ruma Roka, Founder, Noida Deaf Society thinks that this is a
great invention. But definitely not accessible to all.
It is great that mainstream companies are coming forward to include deaf
people in all areas including education, jobs and now even music. But a
majority of deaf people come from economically backward families and such
improvements must be made cost-effective for them as well. Most of the deaf
people have never had any access to music. They would understand music or
even beats from a different perspective and it is all based on a
presumption that this jacket is going to work-Ruma Roka, Founder,
Noida Deaf Society.
Deaf people can experience music through sensations from the
jacket. What makes it even more unique is that the entire apparel has been
made with fabrics and no wires or other electronic equipment are attached to
it so that the user can wear it comfortably. The device vibrate in sync with
the music that is played owing to which they will get a full experience. The
extremely thin and flexible microelectronics are what enables
the user to experience music. For instance, the user can feel a deep bass on
their stomach whereas the soft violin music can be felt on their arms.
“Honestly, I don’t think this idea would work at all because it only caters
to a small fraction of music genre. Hence, it is not a feasible idea”, says
Atharv Beloskar, a deaf student from the Indian
Institute of Technology in Mumbai.
For someone who loves to wear their dancing shoes and shake a leg to music,
‘Sound Shirt’ is definitely a great bet!
Also Read: Some things only a deaf person will understand
