Embodiment in Electronic Dance Music : Effects of musical content and structure on body movement
Year of publication
2020
Authors
Burger, Birgitta; Toiviainen, Petri
Abstract
Electronic dance music (EDM) is music produced with the foremost aim to make people move. While research has revealed relationships between movement features and, for example, musical, emotional, or personality characteristics, systematic investigations of genre differences and specifically of EDM are rather rare. This article aims at offering insights into the embodiment of EDM from three different angles: first from a genre-comparison perspective, then by comparing different EDM stimuli with each other, and finally by investigating embodiments in one specific EDM stimulus. Sixty participants moved freely to 16 stimuli of four different genres (EDM, Latin, Funk, Jazz – four stimuli/genre) while being recorded with an optical motion capture system. Subsequently, a set of movement features was extracted from the motion capture data. Results indicate that participants moved with significantly higher acceleration of torso, head, hands, and feet and more overall movement to the EDM stimuli than to the other genres. Between EDM stimuli, several significant correlations were found, suggesting an increase in acceleration of different body parts with clearer and more percussive rhythmic structures and brighter sounds. Within one EDM stimulus, participants’ movements differed in several movement features distinguishing the break from surrounding sections, showing less acceleration, as well as less overall movement and rotational speed during the break. These analyses propose different ways of studying EDM and indicate distinctive characteristics of EDM embodiment.
Show moreOrganizations and authors
Publication type
Publication format
Article
Parent publication type
Journal
Article type
Original article
Audience
ScientificPeer-reviewed
Peer-ReviewedMINEDU's publication type classification code
A1 Journal article (refereed), original researchPublication channel information
Journal
Publisher
Volume
24
Issue
2
Pages
186-205
ISSN
Publication forum
Publication forum level
2
Open access
Open access in the publisher’s service
No
Self-archived
No
Other information
Fields of science
Theatre, dance, music, other performing arts
Keywords
[object Object],[object Object],[object Object],[object Object],[object Object]
Publication country
United Kingdom
Internationality of the publisher
International
Language
English
International co-publication
No
Co-publication with a company
No
DOI
10.1177/1029864918792594
The publication is included in the Ministry of Education and Culture’s Publication data collection
Yes