Performing Technology: A Five Year Long Autoetnography

Paper Title

Performing Technology: A Five Year Long Autoethnography

Publication Info

• Topic area: Longitudinal autoethnography of performance practice with a movement-based digital musical instrument.
• Keywords: HCI, autoethnography, performance-led research, movement-based musical instrument, somatic awareness, design transformations, performance ecology, embodied interaction, longitudinal study, creative practice.

Background and Problem

• Problem / challenge: Limited research exists on performers' lived experiences with technology during the design process, particularly in long-term engagements. Technologies for performance are often integrated for short periods, restricting the understanding of evolving bodily sensitivities and design transformations.
• Significance: Understanding performers' long-term interactions with technology can inform the design of interactive systems that enhance artistic expression and somatic awareness, bridging gaps between design and performance practices.
• Motivation and related work: Prior studies in HCI and performance focus on audience experiences or short-term engagements. Longitudinal studies, such as Donnarumma’s work, highlight the potential of sustained performer-technology relationships but remain rare. This paper builds on these approaches by exploring how long-term, performance-led research can inform HCI and design through the lived experiences of performers.

Solution

• Proposed approach: A longitudinal autoethnographic study of a five-year performance practice with a movement-based digital musical instrument, Bodyharp, to explore bodily sensitivities, performance ecology, and design transformations.
• Novelty:
  1. Insights into the transformative experience of developing bodily sensitivities through long-term engagement with a movement-based musical interface.
  2. Demonstration of how self-reflective performance practices reveal the artist’s role in design transformations.
  3. Exploration of the interplay between artistic practice, design research, and performance ecology.
  4. Contribution to HCI by emphasizing nonlinear processes and temporal dissonances in creative practice.
• Procedure and key techniques:
  • Reflexive thematic analysis of field notes, video/audio recordings, compositions, and journal entries.
  • Iterative design and performance practice with Bodyharp, integrating the performer’s body into the instrument’s interface.
  • Longitudinal engagement spanning four distinct periods, involving solo and collaborative practices, site-specific performances, and redesigns of the instrument.

Results

• Concrete findings:
  • Long-term engagement with Bodyharp enhanced somatic awareness and attunement to performance ecology.
  • Design transformations emerged from iterative performance practices, including changes to the instrument’s physical interface and sound mappings.
  • Collaboration with other performers and site-specific performances influenced bodily sensitivities and artistic expression.
• Advantage over baselines:
  • Unlike short-term studies, this longitudinal approach revealed evolving performer-instrument relationships and the impact of sustained engagement on design and artistic practice.
  • The study demonstrated how performance-led research can inform design through embodied, situated, and relational insights.
• Experiments / evaluation:
  • Data collected through self-reflective writing, video/audio documentation, and retrospective reflections.
  • Performance sessions included solo and collaborative practices in diverse environments, such as outdoor sites and artist residencies.
  • Analysis focused on themes like bodily sensitivities, performance ecology, and design transformations.
• Limitations and future work:
  • Challenges included interruptions due to relocations, technical failures, and the messiness of documenting a longitudinal practice.
  • Future work could explore broader applications of performance-led research in HCI and extend the study to include more diverse performer perspectives and accessibility considerations.

Summary

This paper presents a five-year longitudinal autoethnography of performance practice with the movement-based digital musical instrument, Bodyharp. The study reveals how sustained engagement with technology enhances bodily sensitivities, informs design transformations, and fosters attunement to performance ecology. By integrating self-reflective practices and embracing nonlinear processes, the research highlights the value of performance-led inquiry in HCI and design research. The findings emphasize the importance of designing interactive systems as relational partners that evolve with performers over time, offering insights for future studies on embodied interaction and creative practice.