Chorusing

A one-day symposium exploring the relationship of voice to transcription – of utterance and the written score. Co-ordinated by Emma Smith as part of her research process, the symposium will culminate with a performance experiment by the artist using a new score for collective voicing developed during her residency at Delfina Foundation.

The symposium will include contributions from specialists in a variety of fields, including Elsa De Luca, Palaeographer, (University of Bristol), and Jerome Lewis, Anthropologist, (University College London).  The talks and workshop during the day lead towards a score for a final performance with a group of choral singers at the end.

Smith’s new work Chorusing has developed out of her 5Hz project, initiated with an exhibition at Arnolfini, Bristol (2015), which presented a new singing language that transcends cultural linguistic barriers. In this new work, Smith is working towards the creation of a new collective vocal scoring system that can be read through sight, touch and sound. This research draws on traditions of polyphonic song, Gregorian transcription and the history of the chorus looking at the relationship of voice, action and materiality as well as theories of a universal tongue, proposed in radical Aristolelianism, through to Dante and Umberto Eco.

Schedule

11:00 – Introduction by Emma Smith

11:15 – Presentation by Dr Jerome Lewis, Lecturer in Social Anthropology, UCL, followed by a group discussion

12:45 – Break for Lunch (not provided)

14:00 – Emma Smith in conversation with Dr Elsa de Luca, Postdoctoral Research Associate in Medieval Musicology, University of Bristol, followed by a group discussion

15:00 – Workshop led by Emma Smith exploring the 5Hz language

15:45 – Break – Tea and coffee served upstairs

16:15 – Performance

16:45 – Drinks served