Lecture:   Music-related micromotion with Alexander Refsum Jensenius (RITMO)When: Wednesday, October 23, 10-12 noonWhere:  CNMAT Main Room (1750 Arch Street)Open to the public and free of charge. 

This presentation will summarize findings from my research into
music-related micromotion. This includes the smallest human motion that
we can perform and perceive, typically measured at a scale of
millimeters. We have over the years carried out a series of studies of
human micromotion, in which people have been asked to try to stand still
on the floor, both in silence and with (musical) sound. By measuring
their bodily responses with different types of motion tracking and
physiological devices we find a number of similarities between people's
quantity and quality of motion. This has been the starting point for
exploring the use of micromotion in musical practice, what I call 'sonic
microinteraction'. This includes standstill performances with
interactive sound and light. It also includes several installations with
our ensemble of self-playing guitars. These are hybrid instruments,
using digital sound-production through acoustically resonating guitars.
They are controlled through inverse microinteraction, meaning that you
need to focus on standing still to produce any sound. This challenges
our traditional understanding of the affordance of musical instruments,
and opens for both artistically and scientifically interesting
perspectives.


Alexander Refsum Jensenius is a music researcher and research musician,
working as Associate Professor of Music Technology and Deputy Director
of RITMO Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies in Rhythm, Time and Motion
at the University of Oslo. His research focuses on why music makes us
move, and how we can use the human body in musical interaction. He also
designs, builds, and performs traditional and very untraditional
instruments. As chair of the steering committee of the International
Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression (NIME), he is a
leading figure in the international music technology community. He was a
visiting researcher at CNMAT in 2001 and 2002.

http://people.uio.no/alexanje/