Lecture at University of Huddersfield

In full flow in the lecture theatre

Today I was at the University of Huddersfield delivering a lecture to students on 'Interactive Technology in Action' (part of the Undergraduate Music Technology course). This involved looking at how interactive technology has been used to create a range of installations covering everything from sensory rooms to exhibition stands.

This is the second time I've visited to present the lecture.

News: Apollo win at York Press Business Awards

Apollo Creative tonight received the award for Best Higher Education and Business Link at the York Press Business Awards.

Fighting off competition from companies including last years winner and heavy weight opponent Northern Rail, Apollo triumphed at a glittering awards ceremony.

The award recognises Apollo's comittment to working with a range of educational establishments from Primary Schools through to Further Education. Recent work has included a series of lectures and mentoring at Scarborough Campus University of Hull for the Creative Music Technology course, and guest lecture slots at Hull, Huddersfield and York.

You can read about the work that lead to Apollo Creative being named the winner of the Best Higher Educationa and Business category here on the company blog;

Charms of the Sea

The Charms of the Sea project that we ran at Scarborough Campus University of Hull was featured in the Scarborough Evening News.

If you want to catch the exhibition at the Rotunda then make sure you get down before Sunday!

Apollo win York Press Business Award

Mark (right) collecting the award from York University
Pro-Vice-Chancellor Colin Mellors (c) The Press, York

All the hard work of the last four years paid off tonight when Apollo Creative scooped the Best Business and Higher Education category at the York Press Business Awards. Beating off stiff competition from Northern Rail (last years winners) and Natures Laboratory, Apollo was commended by the judges for its strategy of engagement across Higher Education.

Thanks to everyone at Apollo and to all our colleagues that we've worked with across education over the past few years. As you can see by the post below we already have some more collaborations planned for the coming year.

Ensemble at 'Inclusion not Exclusion'

The Apollo Ensemble took centre stage at the 'Inclusion not Exclusion' event run by East Riding Voluntary Action Services. It was part of the display and presentation for the Inclusive Youth Theatre Project.

The club is free to join and teachs skills in dance, music, singing, drama and performance. There are also opportunities to learn backstage techniques including prop making, creating sound effects and recording studio technology.

Jacki Dealtry, Project Manager, said “This is fully inclusive, allowing students from mainstream and special needs schools/colleges to take part. It’s a brand new initiative and something that has never been done before in the East Riding”.

The project has acquired two portable kits, with laptops, Ensemble Hubs, lighting, speakers and a range of Ensemble sensors and switches. Delegates at the event had the chance to play on the kit, triggering sounds and lights with a carnival feel.

York Press Business Awards 2010 - The build-up

The York Press Business Awards are tomorrow night and Apollo Creative is short listed in the Best Business and Higher Education category. Judging was about two months ago now, so it all seems a distant memory. Having said that, our work across the education sector continues with any potential award being purely the icing on the cake.

As well as the course just completed at the Scarborough Campus University of Hull (which was developed jointly with the Creative Music Technology lecturer Rob MacKay), we also have the following on-going or scheduled in:

• "Interactive Technology in Action" Lecture and student feedback session, University of Huddersfield, November 2010 
• "Practical applications of Creative Music Technology" Lecture, Scarborough Campus University of Hull - December 2010
• Support for GCSE Design Project - Radio Design
• Support for A-Level Product Design Course - Bubble Lamp
• A series of lectures in the Department of Electronics, University of York
• Continuing work with the Research and Innovation Office, University of York

That's not to mention some of the bigger, longer term projects I'm not allowed to talk about. Even if we don't win this year we'll have plenty to recommend us for next years awards.

Fingers crossed for tomorrow night.

Scarborough Session - Final Presentations

It was the final session in Scarborough today, where the students had to present their finished installations. The four interactives have been combined into a single, touchscreen podium, installed on the first floor of the Rotunda Museum.

All four groups have done a fantastic job, producing installations that wouldn't look out of place on permanent display. Combining learning and games, each one takes a slightly different approach to present their charms.

I'm now busy typing up my notes from the session to send back to the University to help provide some feedback to the groups. Unfortunately I can't make it back to the opening reception on Wednesday, when hopefully they can celebrate their achievements.

The installation will be open from Thursday this week (18th) until the 28th November. If you get a chance then I highly recommend a visit. The students will be on hand over the period to help you out and talk through the work that they have done. Judging by the standard of some of the interactives you may well be seeing their installations in museums across the world in a few years time.

For opening times and location details visit the Rotunda Museum website: www.rotundamuseum.org.uk

Scarborough Session - Prototypes Presented

The students at Scarborough today presented their prototype installations to Jan and Ian from the Scarborough Museums Trust, Rob McKay and I. This was the first opportunity for us to see working versions of the systems that the four grousp are designing.

Overall I was impressed by how far most of the groups had got within such a short space of time. It's only four weeks since we set the assignment and three weeks since they pitched the initial ideas. Most groups had graphics, voiceovers, audio (tunes and sound effects), plus various working interactive elements.

The main criticisms were around the use of language and text. This included voiceovers that used complex words and tricky fonts on complex backgrounds. It's a common mistake to get carried away with the 'look and feel' of an installation and forget about comprehension. These installations need to appeal to audiences from 5 to 95.

The groups are keeping blogs detailing their work on the project, allowing me to keep up to date between sessions. They've also been provided with Flip video cameras so that they can put on video clips. The process is very interesting and the students are making use of some interesting software tools. You can visit their blogs by following the links below:

• Group 1 - Trade
• Group 2 - Protection
• Group 3 - Health
• Group 4 - Good Catch

They now have just two weeks before they have to be finished and we get to mark them. A lot of sleepless nights to come. At least this time it's not me.