What Does This Photo Have To Do With Improvisation?

An important part of improvisation is seeing and sensing what is there.  Often when we are looking for something, we fail to notice things and appreciate the details of what is there.

I took this picture when I was running along the river.  I was looking out for natural things:  rabbits, hawks, flowers.  The smashed-in television was not what I was looking for.  It did not fit with the sunny Spring day moment I was having.  Perhaps I could have run by that garbage, but it did catch my attention.  That is another important thing:  Make your attention available and notice what catches it.  Allow yourself to respond.  Get closer.  Pause.  Take it in, then let yourself engage:  what specifically interests me?  how do I want to interact with it?

In this case, I was taking a photo, so I needed to decide how to frame it in order to emphasize what attracted me, to illuminate what aspect had power for me.  In this instance,  I wanted to focus on the content, the inside of the tv.  I was not interested in the outer casing that we see all the time.  So, we accentuate the strong details with our choice of how we frame the material.  We can also do this in (dance) improvisation.  We don't necessarily have to make ourself the focal point, but rather choose something bigger or more powerful than ourselves... we make ourselves of service to reveal that something bigger than our little self.   Here, I wanted to accentuate not just the contents but the chaos of the contents, so I let the wires and electrical components dominate the space.

Once you have noticed what catches your attention, followed your curiosity, engaged with the material, framed the situation to emphasize what intrigues you, then what?   Stick around.  Look again.  What else is there?  For me, it wasn't until I went home and looked further at the photo that I noticed the empty nip bottle of Fighting Cock bourbon inside the tv.  What a fabulous little surprise that I had missed. It added another layer to the chaos of the contents and brought another presence into the image.  It added bourbon, the human drinking the bourbon, perhaps while they smashed in the television...or not.  I liked the addition.

So, yes, just when you think you've noticed everything, look again.  See what you see.  There's always more if you are interested..... if you are interested.   And that's a whole other story for next time.

Videography as an Artistic Medium

I'm realizing how much I like video as an artistic medium. I feel it tells the viewer so much about the subject in front of the camera, but also about the person behind the camera. We could perhaps say this about any creative form, but I think everything transmits so quickly through video because it is visual... and we are such visual creatures. Yes, a picture is worth 1,000 words and video is like a picture every second. Also because video is dynamic, we see when and how the attention of the person behind the camera shifts.
This post was inspired by a short video my 74 year old mother took of her garden. As I watched it, I saw the garden but I felt a very clear sense of her presence. I was surprised by how much it translated through the way the filming was handled.
I suppose I also particularly enjoy the way I can feel an artist come through their creation even if the subject matter is quite different than he/she. Technique is important, but only as it serves to allow the artist to articulate his/her individuality.

Matthew Azevedo & Liz Roncka

I especially enjoy the development of the music in this section.  Matt is over in the corner improvising this marvelous sound with my movement.

Improvisation with Sound Artist Matthew Azevedo

Excerpt from 30 minute open score improvisation with sound artist, Matthew Azevedo. Unfortunately, Matt and his set-up were outside camera view.

May 15, 2015

Sensation of the Situation

Improvised Text, Movement and Sound

Liz Roncka & Christophe Delerce

Cambridge, Massachusetts  USA

April 2015

But Now, No More

I had found the frame, but I lost it.
The way to see so I liked what I saw.
But now, no more.

We Were Made for This

Know that you know.  Trust that you know.  We were made for this.  Born to die and built to survive.

Cats, Words and Essence

I woke up knowing that I wanted to write about "essence".  I drank coffee and wandered around my apartment mulling the topic over in my head, trying to figure out the words I wanted to use.  I often find words frustrating since they are only a representation of what I am trying to express.  I am aware that something is lost when I translate a feeling or sensibility into words.


Then I wondered why I switched from posting primarily movement videos in this blog to including more writing.  When I began this blog, I was not teaching improvisation.  Teaching has required me to develop ways to transmit my "knowledge" from inside my mind and body to other people.  Thus words have become very important.  Several years ago, I was interested in knowing how to improvise, in understanding my practice, my method.  Now it is about sharing that knowledge and facilitating others in developing his or her own practice/method.


In order to have clear and powerful relationships, in art or otherwise, we must understand and respect the essence of that which is involved:  the essence of the movement, the essence of the individuals, the essence of the relationships that are present between all that is happening.  The relationships between time and space, between different instruments, different bodies, between the bodies and the environment, between audience and performer, on and on and on.  It could seem overwhelming, but when we use all of our senses and sensibilities, when we open ourselves completely, we can do this.  We are built to do this:  to sense, process, prioritize, respond.  It's a matter of opening, allowing, trusting.  We must notice the details, but not get caught up in them.  We must let our senses be sensors and let our brain integrate and our body execute.  Open, allow, trust.

Of course, there is much to be said about composition, but I believe that the magic comes from the opening and trusting.  This is where the challenge is. Composition is the easy part.

Then two of my cats had a fight and illustrated a great deal about what is essential in the moment.  Meow.