Kinok: From a cinematic concept to a fusion of music and dance. A unique approach by Thierry de Mey and Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker

Abstract

This article focuses on the study of the phenomenon of the simultaneous exploration of musical and choreographic writing, a phenomenon that has been gradually developing in contemporary Western artistic creation. Renowned collaborations, such as that between Igor Stravinsky and George Balanchine for Agon, or between John Cage and Merce Cunningham during their happenings, serve as notable examples, although distinct in their approaches. Emerging at the end of the 20th century, Kinok by Thierry De Mey and Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker illustrates this desire for reciprocity through a formal process inspired as much by mathematical as by poetic logic, juxtaposing the physical writing of dance with sound composition. Stimulated by Dziga Vertov's concept of "Kino-Oki," De Mey explores its principle to guide co-creation with the choreographer. How can this cinematic logic, capturing multiple perspectives simultaneously, be adapted to co-integrate musical and dance writing? And how far can the joint exploration of a compositional process be taken?

The objective of this article stems from this question and aims to reveal the methods employed by the composer of Kinok. To carry out this study, a paradigmatic approach was favored. Through the creation of "layers" based on observation of the video recording and the tracking of the score, we gathered diverse information on the same sequences at both macro and micro levels. These gestural and sonic elements made it possible to identify key structural "nodes" in the composition, highlighting "points of divergence" and facilitating the understanding of the overall form, as well as essential compositional processes. A heuristic approach was also employed through the collection of various sources, including interviews with the creators, which are crucial for understanding the creative process.