A Brand New Sense: the use of movement sonification by older adults for physical activity
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Leeds
Department Name: Sch of Performance & Cultural Industries
Abstract
A Brand New Sense (BraNeS) aims to create a digital tool that makes movement fun and aids creative expression and intergenerational exchange within the user's home setting and/or community environments. Just like anyone else, when they exercise, old people experience important health benefits. They are able to move better, accomplish daily and routine tasks easier and experience a positive shift in their mood. However, a major challenge is how to get people to become active in a way that they enjoy. Research has shown that a combination of movement and music is enjoyable, and people are more likely to adhere to exercise programmes that involve music. Studies have also shown that the social dimension of physical activity is an important factor of enjoyment. BraNeS explores the use of movement sonification as a form of physical activity that combines creative expression and social interaction. Movement sonification is the synchronous production of sound and movement through a digital device. It is an emerging practice which, on the on hand, is spreading within youth and music subcultures through new products aimed at primarily young audiences. It is also being tested within health and clinical settings for the treatment of health conditions and/or the improvement of physical performance. Through developing an existing prototype, BraNeS capitalises on this trend, in order to develop an intuitive, affordable and accessible tool that can be used in the user's living environment and increase mobility, aid creative expression and encourage intergenerational social interaction.
| Title | A Brand New Sense: the use of echome for encouraging movement in older adults |
| Description | This film documents the experience of a group of older adults working with echome, a wearable technology for sound and movement interaction. Funded through a ESRC Healthy Ageing Catalyst award, the project aimed to explore methods and ways of working that would enable a group of older adults to work with echome within a creative setting. The findings suggest that in addition to encouraging movement and increasing self-efficacy, the use of echome had a positive impact on group cohesion, sharing of memories and stories, and inter-subjective expression and communication. |
| Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
| Year Produced | 2023 |
| Impact | The film provides a vivid demonstration of the project showcasing the experience of the participants and reporting on the benefits they perceived. |
| URL | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHoHhvKYIlw&t=3s |
| Title | Full of Life |
| Description | I worked for 9 weeks with the Performance Ensemble, a theatre company of older performers. We worked with the technology exploring its use for movement and storytelling and a sharing of the work took place in stage@leeds in December 2022. The sharing as well as interviews with the participants was filmed and this will be made soon available. The company invited me to work with them on a week long residency in July 2023. |
| Type Of Art | Performance (Music, Dance, Drama, etc) |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Impact | The participants reported great satisfaction with the work and the use of the technology and the company's artistic director talked about how the use of the technology led him to see at the performers in anew light. The use of the technology revealed new skills in movement and new approaches to creating and performing movement material. |
| Title | Full of Life II |
| Description | A performance with The Performance Ensemble exploring the use of echome in relation to themes of gravity. |
| Type Of Art | Performance (Music, Dance, Drama, etc) |
| Year Produced | 2023 |
| Impact | The use of echome by a company of older performers has been consolidated and original performance material was created. |
| Description | The award provided evidence that sound and movement interaction can encourage movement in older adults (which was the original hypothesis the award was aiming to test). It also provided evidence that sound and movement interaction. especially in a group setting, can have a positive impact on mood and sociality. |
| Exploitation Route | An Knowledge Transfer Award (awarded internally by the University of Leeds) aims to enable the embedding of echome in the activities of Age UK Leeds, so that the organisation can have access to the equipment and know how and use it as part of different services (ways to wellbeing, hospital to home etc). This project has been successfully delivered between 2023 and 2024. Another internal award has been secured this year (Ignite awarded by the Cultural Institute at the University of Leeds) which aims to train a group of dance artists to deliver sessions with echome in care homes for people living with dementia. |
| Sectors | Creative Economy Other |
| Description | The prototyping of the echome box and the echome sensor that has been undertaken as part of the ESRC award has led to the creation of two reliable and user friendly interactive technologies which can be used in arts and community and social care settings. echome sensors haven been acquired by a. Pyramid Arts and they are now being used by arts professionals in creative workshops with people with learning difficulties and b. Unbound Dance Theatre who is using echome as part of an ACE project for making dancing available to adults with visual impairment. The principle researcher also worked with duo Harmony in Motion, a company that offers dance provision for people living with Parkinson's. echome is a primary tool in the company's work and they have been awarded a Develop Your Creative Practice Award from ACE to explore the use of echome further. An additional award that the principle investigator secured last year (Knowledge Exchange project funded internally by a Research England fund managed by the University of Leeds) also involved working with Age UK, Leeds and explored the way echome could be embedded in the organisation's resources. 5 echome boxes were given to 5 participants to take home and work with the technology independently. This extended the impact of the project, as it meant that the participants could work with the technology outside the facilitator led sessions offered at Age UK. The participants used the box in innovative ways and this demonstrates the breadth of the possible impact. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2024 |
| Sector | Creative Economy,Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software) |
| Impact Types | Cultural Societal |
| Description | echome in Ways to Well being |
| Organisation | Age UK |
| Department | Age UK Leeds |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | My research has made available to older adults and Age UK staff the technology and know how of using echome, a wearable technology for sound and movement interaction. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The partner has made possible to access a pool of service users and explore the use of echome in different settings. |
| Impact | A film documenting the experience of Age UK service users working with echome: https://youtu.be/jHoHhvKYIlw |
| Start Year | 2023 |
| Title | echome box |
| Description | the echome box is a stand alone unit that includes a Raspberry Pi and a wearable sensor. The RP is loaded with the echome software and the sensor with a code that links with the RP. The unit needs to be plugged in to mains socket and requires no other set up. Sound and movement interaction is made available in a way that is really intuitive and quick to set up. |
| Type Of Technology | Physical Model/Kit |
| Year Produced | 2023 |
| Impact | The echome box makes sound and movement interaction available in people's homes and professional care environments (such as care homes and day centres). The box has been given on loan to care homes in Leeds and has been trialled by care professionals. The box has also been given on loan to Age UK service users who are testing its use at home, and have so far reported positive outcomes (engagement with movement where they would have been non, marked change in mood). |
| URL | https://echome.leeds.ac.uk/echome-box/ |
| Title | echome sensor |
| Description | The echome sensor s an assemblage of off the shelf technologies housed in a 3-d printed case. |
| Type Of Technology | Physical Model/Kit |
| Year Produced | 2023 |
| Impact | The housing of the sensor with a rechargeable battery in a custom made case and makes the sensor sustainable and durable. This has significantly improved the overall operation of the system as the sensor and its ability to connect to the echome software is far more reliable. |
| URL | https://echome.leeds.ac.uk/laptop-based-system/ |
| Description | Stakeholder Engagement with the Leeds City Council, Age UK, Rsearch and Innovation Service at the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, private care home providers. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | The activity involved presentation of the project at various fora of professionals involved with the care of older adults. I had meetings with the Leeds City Council Care Delivery and Care Assurance Service, and Age UK I presented the work at a meeting with activities coordinators at care homes, and arranged a series of visits for working with the staff and the residents throughout March. I began a partnership with Age UK, working directly with their movement facilitator and a group of older adults who attend the 'Move with Confidence' sessions. A project on intergenerational exchange will be delivered in later in April. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | echome in care homes |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Patients, carers and/or patient groups |
| Results and Impact | 9 visits were made to care homes in the Leeds area during which the research team worked with residents and care professionals. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | echome sessions in day centre |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Patients, carers and/or patient groups |
| Results and Impact | A series of 6 sessions were supported by the Leeds City Council for using echome in a day centre with older adults and adults with disabilities. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |