EyeHarp and Voctro Labs, two proposals present at Sònar+D 2018
Contra el genocidi i contra la violació dels drets humans, a Gaza i arreu del món
Peace comes when you talk to the person you most hate. And that’s where the courage of a leader comes.
Desmond Tutu (1931-2021), first recipient of an honorary doctorate from UPF
These words, spoken by Desmond Tutu, the first person ever to be awarded an honorary doctorate by UPF, are more applicable today than ever. The UPF condemns, and will always condemn, the use of violence to settle disputes. At UPF, we advocate approaching political or territorial conflicts based on dialogue and respect for all peoples and minorities.
As a university, we also want to show our support to the academic community in countries at war. Universities and scientific institutions are more necessary than ever in these regions. Access to education and the promotion of critical thinking, in the context of strong independent institutions, are the way to ensure the informed debate and reflection that can open the door to new avenues for finding solutions.
At UPF, we are aware of the university community’s concern for the human rights violations we are seeing in the conflicts around us. That is why on this website you will find information about campaigns and actions related to current conflicts, as well as opinion pieces and institutional statements. We also offer a dedicated e-mail address – [email protected] – to contact the university and let us know about your interests and concerns.
EyeHarp and Voctro Labs, two proposals present at Sònar+D 2018
From 13 to 16 June, this international conference brings to the city of Barcelona 5,000 accredited members of 3,000 companies from 65 countries that participate in more than 100 scheduled activities. The Music Technology Group will be co-hosting the Innovation Challenge 2018 area.
Sònar+D 2018 is being held from 13 to 16 June in Barcelona and is an international conference to explore how creativity changes the present and imagines new futures, in collaboration with researchers, innovators and economic leaders. Since 2013, it has attracted to the city renowned artists, creative technologists, musicians, filmmakers, designers, thinkers, scientists, entrepreneurs, makers and hackers to participate in a carefully selected programme focusing on inspiration and networking.
Jointly organized by the Music Technology Group (MTG) of the Department of Information and Communication Technologies (DTIC) at UPF, the Sònar+D Innovation Challenge (SIC) area is a virtual and presential platform for creative minds at the cutting edge of experimentation. Technology companies launch challenges to a select group of artists who will have been working for five weeks on the prototypes that will be shown at Sònar+D.
EyeHarp, a tool for learning music designed for people with motor disabilities that allows controlling the musical performance with the gaze
One such challenge is the project EyeHarp, an application created by Zacharies Vamvakousis, a researcher with UPF’s MTG who has developed a tool for learning music designed for people with motor disabilities that allows controlling the musical performance with the gaze. “The program performs a mapping of the gaze through a video games camera and, like all instruments, you have to practise a lot to master it, and yet more so for people who cannot speak or cannot walk and do not have such a sense of rhythm”, said Vamvakousis. For this reason the project team is working on tools that promote the practice of musical perception and rhythm.
Catalan startups present their innovations for the future
Voiceful, a set of tools that uses the voice to generate new forms of expression; to generate spoken content that includes emotions; that transforms the voice in real time or that creates unique and customized artificial voices
In this edition of Sònar 2018, twenty-five Catalan startups are presenting their innovation in Sònar+D’s Startup Garden space. One of them is Voctro Labs, a startup created on the basis of the research carried out at UPF’s MTG that applies artificial intelligence to generate voices (both speaking and singing) for use in applications of video games, virtual reality, music, video, advertising, social apps and IoT devices.
One of its most recent creations is Voiceful, a set of tools that uses the voice to generate new forms of expression; to generate spoken content that includes emotions; that transforms the voice in real time or that creates unique and customized artificial voices. Available for web, mobile, and tablet.
More information on Voctro Labs:
Aiats Agustí, “A garden of startups”, elMón, VIAempresa, 25 May 2017.
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Catalan government
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European Commission
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Red Cross
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Legal Clinic
The UPF Legal Clinic regularly holds talks and roundtables on the protection of human rights in crisis regions.
Libraries Without Borders
The Libraries Without Borders programme, sponsored by the Catalan Development Cooperation Agency (ACCD), offers Catalan public library patrons knowledge and insight into situations of human rights violations and provides resources to take action.
Council for At-Risk Academics
The Council for At-Risk Academics, in partnership with universities and higher education institutions, provides urgently-needed help to academics in immediate danger, those forced into exile, and many who choose to work on in their home countries despite serious risks.