As we mentioned last Friday, Austin entrepreneur Jim Plamondon, through his company Thumtronics, has unleashed both a new musical instrument and a new concept of music theory on the international stage that many believe could bring substantial attention to our fair city's music industry.

It's called the "Thummer." Praised in last Friday's Wall Street Journal, the device addresses the difficulty that many people experience when attempting to learn how to play the regular old keyboard.

"This could potentially be the most expressive instrument ever constructed, and yet it could also potentially be one of the easiest to learn how to play. This ease of learning arises from its keyboard, which exposes the deep simplicity at the core of music," Plamondon told Austinist. "Because of its simplicity, it's my hope that the Thummer will be the source of a potential turning point in music theory. This change would - for the first time in a century - expand the framework of tonal harmony, opening up vast new creative frontiers and potentially reuniting academic 'serious music' and popular music."

"Furthermore, the new approach to music theory opened up by Thumtronics' innovations can unite the music of many previously isolated cultures, making music truly a single universal language for the first time ever, and spawning new styles & genres in the process."

Heavy. So will it work?

Clearly, as Plamondon sees it, the Thummer's new technology is not only useful as a musical concept, but it could also act as a boost for the Austin music technology industry, allowing the city to lead the way in developing new styles of music and even new approaches to music education. According to his vision, Austin could then use these advances to shift the focus of the global music industry to Central Texas. Which would be nice.

Whether Plamondon's vision for the Thummer can be achieved or not is up for debate, but both the technological trade magazines and Austin media outlets seem to see some serious potential in this invention and have given it substantial coverage.

Of course, the success of this device primarily depends on whether Plamondon can find someone to fund its production, which surprisingly hasn't happened yet. One thing, however, is certain: Austin's music industry could use some organization, and this device, if accepted by consumers, could provide the legions of music industry professionals in this city with a lightening rod around which to gather. Mr. Plamondon may therefore not be the only person with an interest in seeing the Thummer succeed.

What do you think, Austin? Does this instrument have potential for success? And if so, could it spark a new era for Austin's music technology industry?

More information about the Thummer can be found here.