The sonification of…
contact improv

What happens when… we sonify the movement of dancers using next generation technology?

This multimedia performance explores what happens when… the movement and gestures of dancers trigger sounds (music, fx, and voice-overs) in real-time to complement and accentuate their multimedia performance.

DANCERS AS MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS

Using the data from a new generation of motion and location-based sensors, the resolution of detail of the micro movements of the dancers, e.g., the flick of a wrist, is as exciting as it was in the early days of Microsoft's Kinect. This data is then analyzed in realt-ime and sculpted to create dynamic, imaginary strings connecting two or points between both dancers. These imaginary strings are like guitar strings, but elastic and dynamically assigned throughout the performance to trigger different sounds in VCV Rack. If the audio system supports ambisonics or Dolby Atmos, the sounds are spatialized and can move around in 3d space. 

collaborators

Collaborators include dancers Fawn Ciprian (Santa Fe) and Asher Weinstein (Santa Fe), costume design by Erica Frank (Santa Fe - examples of Frank’s work included here), and technology and sound art by Drew Trujillo (ABQ).

the Sonification of Dance (Proof of Concept Video)

This video is simply an early proof-of-concept to demonstrate the use of the latest motion sensors used to trigger sounds, giving agency to and sonifying the movement of real dancers. Disclaimer: Although it was fun sitting in for a dancer, I will not be dancing in the multimedia performance if accepted. All facial expressions are ©.