The most awkward part of hauling a band is the drum set, assuming the venue already has sound equipment (this is a big "if", especially monitors). Can technology improve things?
Without doubt, this has already been tried, suggesting the best route to try next is extremely new technology that didn't exist in previous attempts.
It seems straightforward to replace the big bulky bass drum (foot drum) with an electronic foot pedal. But I suspect it takes bigger and bulkier monitors to replicate the sound for the band. (The rest of the band can usually hear a real drum kit without amplification.)
Also hi-hat.
"Smart" drum sticks, with accelerometers and position sensors could allow the sticks to be hit against any surface, then signal electronics to synthesize the appropriate drum (cymbal, etc.) sound depending on position. Slightly more sophisticated would be sensors in the style of the video game Rock Band to hit, which while still somewhat bulky to carry, are less so than real drums.
A more radical departure is a completely different, more compact interface for making drum sounds. This seems difficult because playing drums is a very whole-body technique, i.e., perhaps nearing some limits of the output bandwidth of the human body (not including speech), so any replacement would also need to also use the whole body. Perhaps some suit with sensors or motion capture?
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