Abstract
Online concerts and music conferences are becoming increasingly necessary. Although online events bring numerous benefits, many event attendees find the online format unsatisfying, mainly because of the lack of human connections and social interactions in comparison with in-person music events. Guided by literature on networked music performance, online social presence, and social computing design principles, we designed and developed Deck 10 Intermedia, an online music event platform that aims to replicate human connections from in-person music events. The effectiveness of the system design and overall user satisfaction are evaluated using data collected from two global music events: the International Computer Music Conference 2021, and the Summer Institute for Contemporary Performance Practice 2021. The results indicate that the system was effective at restoring human connections and that users found the participation experience socially connected and satisfying. The results also led to design recommendations for future online music event systems.