Kingston, RI – July 1, 2025 – The rigidity of mathematics and the creativity of music may not seem to go hand in hand. Brian May – The queen’s guitarist and the remarkable astrophysicist – would probably disagree and he would have some support from another guitarist in the Engineering college at the University of Rhode Island. Ahmad Almuhtaseb ’26, from North Providence, discovered a way to merge his double passions – Music and his major in computer engineering.
Almuhtaseb and two classmates collaborated on a project to build a personalized printed circuit card which works as an amplifier for music instruments. The project was in partnership with XmosA semiconductor company based in Bristol, England, as part of its senior nap project.
URI electrical and computer engineering students are required to participate in a Cornerstone. Students are assigned to groups to work from a list of proposals submitted by industry partners. This year, 53 students worked on 19 projects from the College of Engineering. The program offers the elderly an immersive practical experience collaborating with industry partners who can ultimately lead to job opportunities.
For Almuhtaseb, the potential partnership was an ideal fusion of his love for music and his fascination for computer equipment.
“It was Capstone’s only proposal that was directly linked to music and all the IT things that interested me,” he said. “In the background of my mind, I had the impression that it perfectly united the two things that were most passionate about me as a person who does computer engineering and someone who likes to play the guitar and play with amps.”
“I put my heart roughly in the passion statement that coordinators use to place students in a particular project and, fortunately, I ended up being chosen!” said Almuhtaseb.
Creating and building things has always been part of the life of Almuhtaseb. When he was a junior at North Providence High School, Almuhtaseb and his friends built their own computer.
What captivated it was not only the components, but the way they interacting transparently. He also found himself attracted by the visual result – the screen. He remembers having been fascinated by the way thousands of pixels could meet to form a single image.
“When I was sitting there, assembling everything, I was wondering how all these different components adapt to create this machine, especially since IT technology animates the modern world,” said Almuhtaseb.
When the time came to choose a college, Almuhtaseb selected Uri’s computer engineering program for this reason: its love for computer electronics and their importance in modern society.
Although he had tried on the guitar a few years earlier, it was not until 2020, that his passion for music and the composition began to harmonize. During the pandemic, with more time on his hands, he found himself in the instrument. He caught the choice and the guitar and went back.
“It was my main outlet for three or four years,” said Almuhtaseb.
Thus, when the time has come for him to put his musical talents and his affection for everything related to electronics, he jumped at the opportunity.
The first step of the Capstone project was to determine how to adapt the existing XMOS equipment to something that could take, treat and publish music notes.
“We had to break this table and see what we could withdraw from it, but allow it to work,” he said. “We needed the bare bases – so an input, an output and a processor to be able to read and interpret the data sent from an instrument.”
In addition to looking at the equipment, Almuhtaseb also had to create a diagram. But first, he needed to understand AMP technology.
“After in-depth research, I was able to move on simulations on the circuits printed using engineering software,” he said.
Thanks to these simulations, Almuhtaseb tested if the equipment could receive entries from a guitar and accurately reproduce different cords and notes. Her experience as a guitarist and knowing the nuances of each note, their frequency and how she is supposed to sound helped the project become a success.
The use of the Almuhtaseb simulation software was able to compare sound waves that have been pumped into the card, analyzed by the processor and pumped out of the card. What he found is that the sound waves were similar, proving that his concept to create a functional amplifier worked.
“It was the most fun I have ever worked on a project, because not only my engineering history helped me, but also my background in music,” he said. “For example, I was able to identify the heights in the ear and use it to approximate the frequency of a repetitive sinusoidal wave.”
While some can see music and mathematics as incompatible, Almuhtaseb considers them deeply connected. Whether he designs an amplifier or compose music, he thinks that the two activities are rooted in creativity.
This is something that may agree. It took him 30 years to obtain his doctorate. The reason for the gap was the fact that he was running with Freddie Mercury. However, the aging guitarist who built his own guitar in adolescence – and later his own telescope – attributes his musical talent And time on tour in the world, finally helping him to finish his studies.
“I think there is a lot of overlap between people involved in art and people involved in engineering. Not only in music, but in painting and literature, I think people are motivated by this desire to create, “said Almuhtaseb.
Almuhtaseb is part of the international engineering program and is on the right track to go to Kyushu University in Japan this fall. As part of the program, he will first study abroad at the and then participate in an internship in a Japanese engineering company. Almuhtaseb will obtain a double baccalaureate in computer engineering and global language and regional studies on the Japanese track.