Research

Research at IPEM has a focus on fundamental research related to embodied music cognition, with applications in music education and performance, health and sports, and multimedia, archiving and gaming. Research at IPEM focuses on how people interact with music and use technology as an extension of their body. The human body is considered as the natural mediator between music as physical environment and music as subjective experience. Hence our focus on the relationship between the musical mind, the body and the environment. We have evidence that using technology (e.g. a music instrument, electronics) the action-perception loop of humans can be extended into the environment thus providing mental access into domains that are not accessible without tools. Research at IPEM is focused on a better understanding of this phenomenon and on the effects of music that are beneficial for human beings. This insight is then explored in applications.

Research at IPEM draws upon an interdisciplinary methodology involving music analysis, empirical methods and computational methods. Music analysis has a strong intuitive basis that is rooted in music playing and understanding. This provides the source of much of the work that we do. Empirical methods involve (behavioral) experiments with musicians, listeners, and dancers. Computational methods involve multivariate statistics, machine learning, simulation and tools development.

Research at IPEM is rooted in the systematic musicology. We aim at extending the traditional methods of the humanities by adopting empirical and computational methods. Our mission is to reach the hand to other disciplines such as engineering, psychology and neuroscience.