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Musicians will be able to tear up their sheet music if an invention by a
researcher at Iowa State University in Ames catches on. Arun Somani is
developing a flat-panel screen that will sit on a music stand and display music.
A built-in computer will follow the musician’s progress through the
score—with a microphone that picks up the notes being played—and
“turns the page” as they approach the end of the displayed music. “At the moment
we can do fine with a single instrument,” says Somani. “The next step is to get
it working while other instruments are being played around it—that’s going
to be the hard part.”