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Technological advances over the past 50 years or so have resulted in the development of a succession of hardware and software systems intended to improve the quality and effectiveness of Western music instrument pedagogy during classroom instruction or individual study. These systems have aimed to provide evaluation or visualization of single or combined technical aspects by analyzing performance data collected in real time or offline. The number of such educational technologies shows an ever-increasing trend over time, aided by the wide diffusion and availability of mobile devices. However, we believe there are unrealized opportunities for modern technologies to help music students in their technical development and assist them during their practice sessions in between visits to their teachers. The ubiquity of PCs and mobile devices with built-in microphones, speakers, and cameras has inspired the development of media technologies in support of music pedagogy. They offer an attractive potential for implementing audio signal processing algorithms addressing different technical skills of the performer, providing real-time feedback, collecting data over time, and applying statistical models. Despite this potential, most available software for music instrument pedagogy remains very limited in functionality. This study provides a survey of music edTech software available, together with the methods of use, addressed technical skills, commonalities, and limitations. Results show that most current software is based on the metronome and tuner, with only a few systems that have limited abilities to follow a performance in real-time and compare it to a given score to monitor correctness of notes, intonation, and rhythm. The survey also highlights a high and under-exploited potential regarding the monitoring of other more specific technical skills, which are more instrument-dependent, but no less important, such as the control of dynamic range and clarity of the attack. This article ends with a discussion of possible directions for future development of technologies to support the practice of music students at different levels, with some consideration for the corresponding signal processing methods that can be utilized or that need advancement. By helping students to more efficiently achieve a high level of proficiency of their instruments with assistive technologies, we hope to minimize stress and afford better enjoyment of the music performance experience for all.

We investigate the optimal operation of multi-energy systems deploying geothermal energy storage to deal with the seasonal variability of heating and cooling demands. We do this by developing an optimization model that improves on the state-of-the-art by accounting for the nonlinearities of the physical system, and by capturing both the short- and long-term dynamics of energy conversion, storage and consumption. The algorithm aims at minimizing the CO2 emissions of the system while satisfying the heating and cooling demands of given end-users, and it determines the optimal operation of the system, i.e. the mass flow rate and temperature of the water circulating through the network, accounting for the time evolution of the temperature of the geothermal fields.This optimization model is developed with reference to a real-world application, namely the Anergy Grid installed at ETH Zurich, in Switzerland. Here, centralized heating and cooling provision based on fossil fuels is complemented by a dynamic underground network connecting geothermal fields, acting as energy source and storage, and demand end-users requiring heating and cooling energy. The proposed optimization algorithm allows reducing the CO2 emissions of the university campus by up to 87% with respect to the use of a conventional system based on centralized heating and cooling. This improves on the 72% emissions reduction achieved with the current operation strategies. Furthermore, the analysis of the system allows to derive design guidelines and to explain the rationale behind the operation of the system. The study highlights the importance of coupling daily and seasonal energy storage towards the achievement of low-carbon energy systems.