[sdiy] Foot-stompin' music (idea wanted)

[harry]

Howdy fellow synth-geeks (if you are not a geek just delete this now...)

I'm looking for some ideas for sensing technology. The concept is a floor
mat that you can tap your feet on to trigger drum sounds.

I've built prototypes using optical and FSR sensing... both methods require
you to have your feet in a particular location for the method to work.

I'm looking for a larger area solution. Ideal methods would be thin, silent,
not too heavy (less than 20lbs or so, so a slab o' metal is not out of the
question)...
have variable output with foot impact, velocity, pressure, whatever.

I'm considering an FSR array with the individual pads or'ed together... If I can
get the sensors.  However the company that makes them only offers a design kit
that would be prohibitively expensive to purchase that way...

Price is a semi-object. If it worked well maybe a couple hundred dollars would
not be too much to fund the development.

I'd prefer not to instrument the shoes, a'la Joe Paradiso at MIT (who you should
look up just for his synth, BTW)... because I'd like to hit footswitches without
triggering a drum event.

What'll it be ? Capacitive, Inductive, Magnetic Proxy, Fiber-optics...
some collection of old VF displays or slinkys (a'la electric peasent ;^)
Surface Acoustic Waves... RF... theremin technology ??? Tesla coils?
Metallic shoes ???

Go wild... all reasonable ideas accepted
(and unreasonable as well if they are funny enough...)

H^) harry