Restrained meters for one dancer and electronic media
Restrained meters is a piece integrating dance with interactively generated sound and video. Inspiration for the piece comes from the experience of space in various ways: from the night under the open sky to a tiny room; from vastness of a big city to its crowded trains and buses; from free thought to obeying socially accepted n¬orms and conventions.
Sonic layer of the piece is generated and modified by the movement of the dancer. His movement is sensed using accelerometers and processed in numerous ways (frequency domain Fourier analysis and waveshaping). Obtained data is also used to create advanced filters altering other sounds. The dancer is the performer of the choreography, but he's also the instrument and the instrumentalist at the same time.
Moreover, dancer's movement is analyzed using a depth camera, enabling selective video projection on his body. This projection is generated in real time and amplifies his movement.
The realization of the piece is inspired by works of Merce Cunningham, who often combined his choreographies with music shortly before the performance. In Restrained meters choreography and music were initially created separately, sharing common approach. All the elements of the piece are based on the same inspiration and they assemble during the performance into a complex system of interrelations.
Electroacoustic layer is realized using Ambisonics system, which enables placing sound sources anywhere in space around the listener.
Following people and organizations offered invaluable help during the realization of this project: Wilson Mendieta, Juan Pampin, Jennifer Salk, Marek Chołoniewski, Muzyka Centrum Art Society from Kraków and Center for Digital Arts and Experimental Media (DXARTS) from Seattle.
The piece was commissioned by the Polish Institute for Music and Dance as part of the “Composers commissions 2013” program.

Marcin Pączkowski (b. 1983 in Kraków, Poland) is a composer, conductor, and performer, working with traditional and electronic media. He received his Masters’ degrees from the Academy of Music in Kraków, Poland, where he studied compositionand conducting, and from University of Washington in Seattle, Washington, where he studied composition and computer music. Currently he is a doctoral student in the Center for Digital Arts And Experimental Media (DXARTS), where he studies with Juan Pampin.
His current research is focused on exploring ways of engaging computer media in improvisation, as well as motion tracking and machine learning techniques used for creating and controlling musical structures.
As the conductor and performer he is involved in performances of new music. His compositions were performed on many composers workshops and concerts in Poland and United States.

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