The interdisciplinary artistic research project “Sound / Space / Body – A Process” will have its première on May 28, 2011, at the Radialsystem V. Under the direction of choreographer Louise Wagner, neuroscientists, philosophers, and dancers put the physical awareness of self at the center of an interdisciplinary study inspired by an installation by the pioneer of sound art: Prof. Bernhard Leitner. In her project, Louise Wagner uses the medium of dance to study the perception of sound, in order to communicate a different – physical – way of hearing through seeing movement.

The experiment, of which the audience is a part, is based on the assumption that the body’s awareness is created at two levels: by perceiving, on the one hand, its physicality and, on the other, its subjectivity. Different listening constellations create a communication web among the dancers. The audience observes these communication processes and thus gains access to extended hearing.

Situated as it is at the interface of art and science and combining dance, neuroscience, philosophy, and the visual arts to gain new aesthetic and scientific insights into the field of perception research, the research project “Sound / Space / Body – A Process” receives substantial support from the Schering Stiftung.

Louise Wagner, born in 1981 in Vienna, studied stage design and liberal arts at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna and at the University for Fine Arts in Hamburg. At the same time, she studied dance at the Contemporary Dance School in Hamburg. In 2010 she graduated with a degree in choreography from the Ernst Busch College of Performing Art in Berlin. Her main interest as a choreographer is in collaborating with the fields of fine arts, music, and science. Her works have been shown at the Center for Art and Media (ZKM) in Karlsruhe, the Konzerthaus Berlin, and at national and international festivals such as sonambiente berlin, the multimedia festival Transnaturale in Uhyst, the Kunstfest Weimar, and the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence. Louise Wagner lives and works as a freelance choreographer in Berlin.

Louise Wagner’s project was developed in close cooperation with the Association of Neuroesthetics. In conjunction with the première of “Sound / Space / Body – A Process” at the Radialsystem V, visitors will have the opportunity to attend a panel discussion moderated by Dr. Daniel S. Margulies, philosopher, artist, and neuroscientist.

Sound / Space / Body – A Process

Première: Saturday, May 28, 2011, 8:00 p.m.
Radialsystem V | Holzmarktstrasse 33 | 10243 Berlin

Panel Discussion: Saturday, May 28, 2011
Radialsystem V | Holzmarktstrasse 33 | 10243 Berlin

Additional Performances: Sunday, May 29, 2011, 8:00 p.m.
Radialsystem V | Holzmarktstrasse 33 | 10243 Berlin

Wednesday, June 1; Thursday, June 2; Friday, June 3, 2011, 8:00 p.m.
Church of St. John the Evangelist | Auguststrasse 90 | 10117 Berlin

Sound-Space Installation: Bernhard Leitner
Choreography: Louise Wagner
Moderator: Dr. Daniel S. Margulies

Dancers:
Ruben Antoniano, Barbara Bess, Matthieu Burner, Katharina Meves, Akemi Nagao, Davide Sportelli, and Frank Willens

Produced in cooperation with the Association of Neuroesthetics (AoN).

Scientific Coordination:
Dr. Alexander Abbushi, neurosurgeon, Charité, AoN, Berlin
Ana Gomez-Carrillo de Castro, psychiatrist, Charité, AoN, Berlin
Dr. Elena Agudio, art historian and curator, AoN, Berlin

Scientific Partners:
Dr. Luca F. Ticini, Italian Society of Neuroesthetics Semir Zeki, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig
Professor Dr. Jonathan Cole, neurophysiologist, University of Southampton
Ida Momennejad, Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience, Humboldt University of Berlin
Einav Katan, dancer, philosopher, fellow of the Research Group on Iconicity and Embodiment, Humboldt University of Berlin; PhD candidate, Philosophy Department, Tel Aviv University
Dr. Daniel S. Margulies, Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Humboldt University of Berlin; Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig

Project Management:
Thomas Friedland

Photos: Alexandru Pasca