Start Date
23-4-2026 12:00 AM
Description
This project is an experimental performance exploring dancers as musical instruments. With funding received through the Lindenwood PRIDE Mini-Cycle grant, a network of custom-built wearable sensors will be worn by two dancers to send data regarding orientation, motion, and position in 3D space. This data will be processed in custom software to translate this data into sound or other musical information in real-time. Rather than acting solely as accompaniment, the music will be derived directly from each dancer through gestures and motion. The generated musical material that one dancer creates will be responded to with improvisation by the other dancer. This results in a feedback loop of improvisation between the dancers and the music. The movement shapes the music, and the music reshapes the movement. This project emphasizes artistic discovery and collaboration. It promotes exploration in contemporary practices involved with experimental music and dance while also exploring the relationship between technology and human expression.
Research Highlights
The Problem: Traditional dance performances often use music as a static accompaniment rather than a reactive element, limiting the direct physical influence of the dancer over the musical composition.
The Method: Researchers utilized a network of eight custom-built 9-axis IMU sensors and UWB (ultra-wideband) boards on dancers to capture 3D orientation, motion, and trilaterated horizontal position.
Quantitative Finding: Sensor data is interpolated at an audio rate of 44,180 samples per second to allow real-time modulation of amplitude, filter cutoff frequencies, and delay line feedback.
Qualitative Finding: The system creates a recursive mode of improvisation where movement shapes the music and the music reshapes the movement; transient events like punches or kicks trigger percussive audio samples; spatial processing allows sounds to appear as if emanating directly from the dancers' positions.
Finding: The ARTURA software, built in Max/MSP, functions as a modular performance system that integrates object-oriented mixing and dynamic mapping to transform dancers into musical instruments.
Recommended Citation
Byrnes, Aidan, "Artura: Dance and Algorithmic Composition Informed by Motion and Spatial Processing" (2026). 2026 Student Academic Showcase. 20.
https://digitalcommons.lindenwood.edu/src_2026/Posters/1/20
Included in
Artura: Dance and Algorithmic Composition Informed by Motion and Spatial Processing
This project is an experimental performance exploring dancers as musical instruments. With funding received through the Lindenwood PRIDE Mini-Cycle grant, a network of custom-built wearable sensors will be worn by two dancers to send data regarding orientation, motion, and position in 3D space. This data will be processed in custom software to translate this data into sound or other musical information in real-time. Rather than acting solely as accompaniment, the music will be derived directly from each dancer through gestures and motion. The generated musical material that one dancer creates will be responded to with improvisation by the other dancer. This results in a feedback loop of improvisation between the dancers and the music. The movement shapes the music, and the music reshapes the movement. This project emphasizes artistic discovery and collaboration. It promotes exploration in contemporary practices involved with experimental music and dance while also exploring the relationship between technology and human expression.