Mobile brain imaging in butoh dancers: from rehearsals to public performance
Abstract Background Dissecting the neurobiology of dance would shed light on a complex, yet ubiquitous, form of human communication. In this experiment, we sought to study, via mobile electroencephalography (EEG), the brain activity of five experienced dancers while dancing butoh, a postmodern dance...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
BMC
2024-11-01
|
| Series: | BMC Neuroscience |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12868-024-00864-1 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1850062371057303552 |
|---|---|
| author | Constantina Theofanopoulou Sadye Paez Derek Huber Eric Todd Mauricio A. Ramírez-Moreno Badie Khaleghian Alberto Muñoz Sánchez Leah Barceló Vangeline Gand José L. Contreras-Vidal |
| author_facet | Constantina Theofanopoulou Sadye Paez Derek Huber Eric Todd Mauricio A. Ramírez-Moreno Badie Khaleghian Alberto Muñoz Sánchez Leah Barceló Vangeline Gand José L. Contreras-Vidal |
| author_sort | Constantina Theofanopoulou |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Dissecting the neurobiology of dance would shed light on a complex, yet ubiquitous, form of human communication. In this experiment, we sought to study, via mobile electroencephalography (EEG), the brain activity of five experienced dancers while dancing butoh, a postmodern dance that originated in Japan. Results We report the experimental design, methods, and practical execution of a highly interdisciplinary project that required the collaboration of dancers, engineers, neuroscientists, musicians, and multimedia artists, among others. We explain in detail how we technically validated all our EEG procedures (e.g., via impedance value monitoring) and minimized potential artifacts in our recordings (e.g., via electrooculography and inertial measurement units). We also describe the engineering details and hardware that enabled us to achieve synchronization between signals recorded at different sampling frequencies, along with a signal preprocessing and denoising pipeline that we used for data re-sampling and power line noise removal. As our experiment culminated in a live performance, where we generated a real-time visualization of the dancers’ interbrain synchrony on a screen via an artistic brain-computer interface, we outline all the methodology (e.g., filtering, time-windows, equation) we used for online bispectrum estimations. Additionally, we provide access to all the raw EEG data and codes we used in our recordings. We, lastly, discuss how we envision that the data could be used to address several hypotheses, such as that of interbrain synchrony or the motor theory of vocal learning. Conclusions Being, to our knowledge, the first study to report synchronous and simultaneous recording from five dancers, we expect that our findings will inform future art-science collaborations, as well as dance-movement therapies. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-573ab04f54f44537b707dcac31ec1dda |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 1471-2202 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-11-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Neuroscience |
| spelling | doaj-art-573ab04f54f44537b707dcac31ec1dda2025-08-20T02:49:56ZengBMCBMC Neuroscience1471-22022024-11-0125111610.1186/s12868-024-00864-1Mobile brain imaging in butoh dancers: from rehearsals to public performanceConstantina Theofanopoulou0Sadye Paez1Derek Huber2Eric Todd3Mauricio A. Ramírez-Moreno4Badie Khaleghian5Alberto Muñoz Sánchez6Leah Barceló7Vangeline Gand8José L. Contreras-Vidal9The Rockefeller UniversityThe Rockefeller UniversityNSF IUCRC BRAIN Center, University of HoustonNSF IUCRC BRAIN Center, University of HoustonNSF IUCRC BRAIN Center, University of HoustonRice UniversityThe Rockefeller UniversityBarnand College, Columbia UniversityNew York Butoh InstituteNSF IUCRC BRAIN Center, University of HoustonAbstract Background Dissecting the neurobiology of dance would shed light on a complex, yet ubiquitous, form of human communication. In this experiment, we sought to study, via mobile electroencephalography (EEG), the brain activity of five experienced dancers while dancing butoh, a postmodern dance that originated in Japan. Results We report the experimental design, methods, and practical execution of a highly interdisciplinary project that required the collaboration of dancers, engineers, neuroscientists, musicians, and multimedia artists, among others. We explain in detail how we technically validated all our EEG procedures (e.g., via impedance value monitoring) and minimized potential artifacts in our recordings (e.g., via electrooculography and inertial measurement units). We also describe the engineering details and hardware that enabled us to achieve synchronization between signals recorded at different sampling frequencies, along with a signal preprocessing and denoising pipeline that we used for data re-sampling and power line noise removal. As our experiment culminated in a live performance, where we generated a real-time visualization of the dancers’ interbrain synchrony on a screen via an artistic brain-computer interface, we outline all the methodology (e.g., filtering, time-windows, equation) we used for online bispectrum estimations. Additionally, we provide access to all the raw EEG data and codes we used in our recordings. We, lastly, discuss how we envision that the data could be used to address several hypotheses, such as that of interbrain synchrony or the motor theory of vocal learning. Conclusions Being, to our knowledge, the first study to report synchronous and simultaneous recording from five dancers, we expect that our findings will inform future art-science collaborations, as well as dance-movement therapies.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12868-024-00864-1ElectroencephalographyDanceButohHyperscanningInterbrain synchronyDance therapy |
| spellingShingle | Constantina Theofanopoulou Sadye Paez Derek Huber Eric Todd Mauricio A. Ramírez-Moreno Badie Khaleghian Alberto Muñoz Sánchez Leah Barceló Vangeline Gand José L. Contreras-Vidal Mobile brain imaging in butoh dancers: from rehearsals to public performance BMC Neuroscience Electroencephalography Dance Butoh Hyperscanning Interbrain synchrony Dance therapy |
| title | Mobile brain imaging in butoh dancers: from rehearsals to public performance |
| title_full | Mobile brain imaging in butoh dancers: from rehearsals to public performance |
| title_fullStr | Mobile brain imaging in butoh dancers: from rehearsals to public performance |
| title_full_unstemmed | Mobile brain imaging in butoh dancers: from rehearsals to public performance |
| title_short | Mobile brain imaging in butoh dancers: from rehearsals to public performance |
| title_sort | mobile brain imaging in butoh dancers from rehearsals to public performance |
| topic | Electroencephalography Dance Butoh Hyperscanning Interbrain synchrony Dance therapy |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12868-024-00864-1 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT constantinatheofanopoulou mobilebrainimaginginbutohdancersfromrehearsalstopublicperformance AT sadyepaez mobilebrainimaginginbutohdancersfromrehearsalstopublicperformance AT derekhuber mobilebrainimaginginbutohdancersfromrehearsalstopublicperformance AT erictodd mobilebrainimaginginbutohdancersfromrehearsalstopublicperformance AT mauricioaramirezmoreno mobilebrainimaginginbutohdancersfromrehearsalstopublicperformance AT badiekhaleghian mobilebrainimaginginbutohdancersfromrehearsalstopublicperformance AT albertomunozsanchez mobilebrainimaginginbutohdancersfromrehearsalstopublicperformance AT leahbarcelo mobilebrainimaginginbutohdancersfromrehearsalstopublicperformance AT vangelinegand mobilebrainimaginginbutohdancersfromrehearsalstopublicperformance AT joselcontrerasvidal mobilebrainimaginginbutohdancersfromrehearsalstopublicperformance |