Ululations and Gurgles of the Invisible is an interdisciplinary piece where visual and auditory experiences are connected not only by their content but also through the use of wearable controllers containing different types of sensors.

It is an hour-long piece divided in the four parts presented below. It is based on the poems El niño mudo (“The Silent Boy”) and Desposorio (“Betrothal”) by Federico García Lorca. The poems not only help to build the narrative of the piece, but also they are performed using American and Spanish Sign Language.

• The Silent Boy, for percussion, ASL and lights.
• Gurgles, for 5 dancers wearing sensors, ASL, LSE, video and lights.
• Betrothal, for soprano, piano and ASL.
• The ring, for soprano, piano, percussion, dancers wearing sensors, ASL, video and lights.

The gestural control of sound has existed since the use of the first music instruments. All music instruments need the gesture of the performer in order to sound. These gestures consist of a performer in contact with physical materials that produce sound. Nevertheless, in-group performances, the conductor’s collection of gestures don’t enter into contact with physical materials but control the sound others produce: free-space gestures.

My research interest is focused on free-space gestures as they can encompass disciplines such as dance and sign language, and make them exist as musical expressions. In this piece the dancers are also music performers and the music performers use sign language to convey a message while performing their instrument or singing. In addition, the singer is not the only performer whose role is to carry the text as usually happens in vocal music. Instead, the pianist, soprano, percussionist and one of the dancers all perform the text using sign language.