Music Shapers are soft, squeezable instruments, which allow players to mold, transform, and explore musical material and compositions. Using capacitive sensing and conductive embroidery to measure the squeezing gesture, Music Shapers allow children access to high-level musical parameters such as contour, timbre, density and structure, rarely accessible through traditional musical instruments or pedagogy except after many years of study and mastery. The effect is that of "conducting" musical phrases and forms in a very tactile, visceral and enjoyable way.