Artist : Olga Szymula
World premiere
[ performance ]
Time : Free entry
17. May • 14:00 - 14:45
Location : Musikhuset - Torvet, Thomas Jensens Allé 2, 8000 Aarhus
Support : Danish Composer Society, Aarhus Lydforening and Koda Kultur
Info
Body Epiphanies is a somatic composition by Polish composer Olga Szymula, expanding on The Ears of the Skin, supported by the Danish Composer Society. The piece explores somatics – the body’s internal perception – through sound, physical expression, text, and choreographed movement. Performed by Szymula herself, Afro-Brazilian artist Sandro Masai, and Danish senior dancer Laila Wodtke Nissen, the work unfolds as a choreographed corporeal documentary, drawing from the performers’ personal memories.
Rooted in lived experience, Body Epiphanies explores seven core emotional drives – seeking, play, care, rage, fear, panic/grief, and lust – drawing on neuroscientist Dr. Jaak Panksepp’s research on emotional command systems. His work reveals that these emotions are not abstract concepts but deeply embedded neural processes that shape survival, connection, and human relationships.
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Olga Szymula (b. 1986) is a Polish composer, performer, and director who lives and works in Aarhus, Denmark. Olga specializes in interdisciplinary, experimental works that blend video, sound, and performance. Projects include MON (2021), re- (2023) for K!lart ensemble, and Lapses (2017). Olga also composes scores for film (Baba Vanga, The Siren's Scream) and dance (Gravity, PRIMUS). Recently, Olga has delved into somatics and choreography, shaping Body Epiphanies, which will premiere at SPOR festival 2025. Olga is currently pursuing a postgraduate degree in electronic composition at DIEM.
