ACCOMPANYING SOUND:

ANALYSING THE ROLE OF VISUAL CUES IN THE CONVEYANCE , PERCEPTION AND INDUCTION OF EMOTIONS AND INTERPRETATION OF

MUSICAL AND NOTATED SILENCES DURING A PIANO PERFORMANCE

ABSTRACT

Body movements and facial gestures act as expressive visual cues in facilitating the

conveyance, perception and induction of emotions during a musical performance.

When considering the current research into expressive body movements of solo

pianists during a piano performance, it was found that findings build around a

connection between an increase in amplitude of body movement(s) and of the

resulting perceived level of expressive intention of the performer. However,

perceptions of physical stillness can also convey the expressive intentions of a

performer during a performance that are associated with emotions such as

‘emptiness’, ‘desolation’ or ‘tranquillity’. Furthermore, pianists need to consider the

visually expressive information contained within their walk during their initial stage

entrance, and how, when combined with the execution of musical and/or notated

silences at the beginning, it can impact on an audience’s perceptions of the subsequent

performance.

14,000 words

© Christian Dawson 2013