Research Catalogue

Initiated in 2020, Dorsal Practices is a collaboration between choreographer Katrina Brown and writer-artist Emma Cocker, for exploring the notion of dorsality in relation to how we as moving bodies orient to self, others, world. How does the cultivation of a back-oriented awareness and attitude shape and inform our experience of being-in-the-world? A dorsal orientation foregrounds an active letting go, releasing, even de-privileging, of predominant social habits of uprightness and frontality — the head-oriented, sight-oriented, forward-facing, future-leaning tendencies of a culture intent on grasping a sense of the world through naming and control. Rather than a mode of withdrawal, of turning one’s back, how might a back-leaning orientation support a more open and receptive ethics of relation? How are experiences of listening, voicing, thinking, shaped differently through this tilt of awareness and attention towards the back?

What senses arise from sensing? How does sensing affect the processes of sense-making? How can the density of senses be navigated through writing? This exposition retraces a specific sequence of thinking-in-the-making designed to address such questions in a collective workshop setting, where writing and sensing alternate in an iterative process.

This exposition retraces the practice sharing session we, Delphine Chapuis Schmitz and Ines Marita Schaerer, conducted during Convocation II at Zentrum Fokus Foschung in Vienna. The practice addresses the following questions: how to practice languaging from sensory encounters? how to unfold sense(s) from sensing and aside from pre-given meanings? The shared exploration unfolded as an iterative process alternating a somatic practice with writing sequences in individual and collective constellations.

Just as variety and change are the core principles of nature itself, they seem to be essential for music, too. This research examines doubles in the repertoire for flute between 1700–1750 as a specific type of variation. Originating as a vocal tradition of embellishing the second verses of airs de cour, the tradition continued in instrumental music by creating doubles mostly for songs and dance forms, such as Menuet, Gavotte or Sarabande and remained popular until it gradually evolved into the variation form in the second half of the 18th century. The role of the flute in this repertoire is unique thanks to the vogue of the airs the cour among flautists and composers for flute. The presented exposition traces the development of doubles in the flute repertoire of the first half of the 18th century. Highlighting the variety of unique compositional styles, the research distinguishes between three typological categories of doubles: diminutive, ornamental, and those presented in sets of variations, typical of a Galant sonata. The examination and analysis of a representative number of doubles led me to extract elements and patterns, typical for each category, and, in turn, this thorough study of the doubles allowed me to play them with a better understanding. Finally, the synthesis of both the theoretical and empirical approaches provided enough information and inspiration to compose doubles for other musical pieces from the same period. These newly composed doubles are included in the collection titled L’Art de doubler, attached to the exposition.

This research explores the synergy between auditory and visual sensory impressions, investigating how music and visual arts can merge, interact, and resonate reciprocally to create a unique cross-modal performance. Central to this research is the collaboration with the visual artist Damiano Colombi. The focus is placed on two distinct types of interaction: large canvases enriching the visual space on stage, around which the musician moves, and digital projections created with TouchDesigner, a software that generates real-time visuals reacting to the music. These contrasting approaches shape an immersive experience, transforming sound into moving images and creating a dynamic interplay between structured visual elements and fluid digital projections. A central challenge of this research is to create a balanced interaction between the auditory and visual components, so that each artistic discipline complements and enhances the other, allowing a continuous dialogue between sound and image. Throughout the creative process, these ideas evolved organically, guided by continuous experimentation and reflection. By documenting the sensations, insights, and evolving artistic choices, this research not only explores the theoretical and technical intersections between music and visual arts but also highlights the deeply personal and intuitive nature of interdisciplinary collaboration. Ultimately, this research provides a framework for crafting audiovisual performances that foster a compelling and harmonious fusion of music and visual arts.

This research examines Giovanni Battista Bovicelli’s Regole, passaggi di musica (Venice, 1594), a Renaissance treatise on (vocal) ornamentation. By analyzing Bovicelli’s diminutions, this research aims to identify his characteristic stylistic elements as a composer and singer. Beyond defining these elements, the findings provide a solid foundation for comparing his style with that of Giovanni Bassano, previously studied, and for applying Bovicelli’s techniques in newly written diminutions. More broadly, this study contributes to a deeper understanding of late 16th-century Italian diminution practice. Bovicelli’s treatise offers information for singers about text placement, presents examples of diminutions for various intervals, cadences, and melodic contexts, and includes his own diminuted lines of well-known pieces of the time. This research focuses specifically on the examples of diminutions, analyzing them according to seven musical criteria: note values, range, intervals, melodic sequences, rhythmic patterns and/or sequences, standard figures such as trills and turns, and ficta application. Additionally, in cadences and melodic contexts, the extent to which the original melody is preserved is assessed. The results of this analysis are presented in tables and graphs for a clear overview. Additionally, the research includes a comparative analysis of Bovicelli’s and Bassano’s diminution styles, clarifying both their individual characteristics and, very carefully, broader trends in 16th-century Italian diminution practice. Furthermore, newly composed diminutions in Bovicelli’s style demonstrate the practical application of the findings. These diminutions are written on the well-known Anchor che col partire by Cipriano de Rore (1516-1565).