This paper contends that the design of digital mu-sical instruments for live performance and compo-sition has been hindered by the tendency to create novel applications which fail to offer musicians access to the more perceptually-significant aspects of electronic music. Therefore, as a means of addressing this problem, this paper promotes the establishment of a more intelligent approach to the construction of digital musical instruments: one that is informed by relevant studies in human-computer interaction, cognitive psychology and product design.