
Our project is an open-ended exploration of sonification of body movement, using motion sensors. In simpler terms, we will explore how body movement can be translated into sound, and what kind of compound artistic languages can result from such translations. We are exploring along three axises;
1. CONFUSING BODY INSTRUMENTS: Constructing multimodal body sonification models in which all limbs of the body affects all others. As an example: The angle of the left foot determining the pitch of the sonic output of head movement, while the median position along the Z-axis of all sensors determining spectral blurring of the sonic output of the legs. This kind of interconnectedness and entanglement can represent a rich field of exploration for a dancer/performer; a hidden landscape of sound only accessible and mappable through continued physical exploration.
2. MATERIAL AMBIGUITY: This builds on previous works, in which I made “sound costumes” of concrete materials, like slime and stone, making the body take on a sonic identity with strong associative connections to the animal world, or even the mythical. I want to explore this further by introducing material shifts; enabling the performer to switch materiality through certain gestures, hence gaining control of the body’s acoustic identity.
3. QUEER AESTHETICS: The male queer body is associated with a specific language of movement. I am interested in capturing certain aspects of these “iconic gestures”, like the waving of hands, throwing back hair, walking on heels, etc. Many of these gestures are deeply connected with drag aesthetics, but are also parts of mainstream ways of displaying gay sexuality, both inside and outside gay communities. I will not delve too far into this here, but in short I find it interesting to amplify and contort these movements; Perhaps giving them a gravitas or surprising new dimensions. I see this as a homofuturist project, in which classic hallmarks of gayness are recontextualised and expanded upon.
AMUND ULVESTAD
Amund Ulvestad (b. 1982) is a Norwegian artist, musician and composer based in Oslo and Berlin. He holds an MA in Music Technology from The Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), with a specialization in sound art and composition.
Ulvestad has been active as a touring musician for 30 years, and has held a wide range of concerts and performances in Europe, Asia, and the Americas both as a soloist and as part of various ensembles, primarily using cello, voice and electronics as his main instruments. Today, he mainly works with experimental music, sound art and performing arts.
Ulvestad has held solo exhibitions and performances at amongst others Atelier Nord, Trøndelag Center for Contemporary Art and KW Institute for Contemporary Art in Berlin. He has also created music and sound for over 30 theatre and dance productions, including at the Norwegian National Theatre, the Croatian National Theatre and The Ibsen Theatre, as well collaborating with a host of ensembles in the international independent performing arts field. He has also scored music for several feature films.
Since 2015, Ulvestad has been a guest lecturer at institutions such as NTNU and the Norwegian Theatre Academy, and since 2020 he has been affiliated with Freie Universität Berlin as an artist in residence and associate fellow.
ULF NILSENG
Ulf Nilseng (b. 1963) is an award-winning Norwegian dancer and choreographer based in Oslo. He started off as a dancer, working and touring both nationally and abroad with several influential choreographers from 1995 to 2010. In the same period he created his first work «Terrengløp» (1999) in collaboration with video artist Kai Rennes. In 2002, he founded the company TOYBOYS with Terje Tjøme Mossige, and created ten performances revolving around queerness between 2002 and 2013. Their performances were known for a mixture of humor and gravity, challenging the limits of normal behavior.
Creating ULF kompani in 2015, Nilseng continued his work with new collaborators, further exploring queerness on stage and bringing forth a personal, imaginative and physical dance that investigates power, language, prejudice and the experience of being an outsider. The company has so far produced seven critically acclaimed performances and more are under planning.
Ulf also remains active as a dancer, collaborating with renowned choreographers in various contexts, from cultural bastions like the Norwegian Opera and Ballet to independent art-forward productions. He is also a sought-after workshop leader, regularly teaching both experienced dancers and students in institutions like the Norwegian Theatre Academy. He was granted a 10 year work stipend by the Norwegian Arts Council in 2018 (?) and the Honorary Award from the Norwegian National Resource Centre for the Art of Dance in 2022.