Somatic Sonification in Dance Performances. From the Artistic to the Perceptual and Back

Abstract

Since the end of the 1980s, interactive musical systems have played an increasingly relevant role in dance performances. More recently, the use of interactive auditory feedback for sensorimotor learning such as movement sonification has gained currency and scientific attention in a variety of fields ranging from rehabilitation to sport training, neuroscience and product design. This paper investigates the convergence between interactive music/dance systems and movement sonification in the field of dance. The main question we address is whether the emergence of the notion of sonification can foster new perspectives for practice-based artistic research. In this context, we highlight a fundamental shift of perspective from musical interactivity per se to the somatic knowledge provided by the real time sonification of movement, which can be considered as a major somatic-sonification turn.