UMBC Professor Linda Dusman of Music and Assistant Professor Eric Smallwood of Visual Arts will present their collaborative research onSymphony Interactive, a tablet application that re-envisions the traditional concert going experience. The presentation will discuss the history of the project, focusing on the unique challenges in regard to the information, graphic and interactive design of an “unobtrusive” application intended to heighten and enrich the experience of live musical performances.

Linda Dusman’s compositions and sonic art explore the richness of contemporary life, from the personal to the political. Her recently released solo CD I need no words contains sonic reflections on a variety of texts, from Joan Retallack to Emily Dickinson. Recent works include Interiors for solo piano, and Subterranea for percussion quartet. Her music has been awarded by the International Alliance for Women in Music, the State of Maryland (in both the Music: Composition and the Visual Arts: Media categories), and the Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation, among others. Her compositions are published by I Resound Press, and are recorded on the NEUMA, Capstone, and New Albany labels. Dr. Dusman is a Professor of Music at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC).

Eric Smallwood is an artist, animator, filmmaker and educator. His inaugural solo exhibition,Tethered in the Weather at VisArts of Rockville (2013) exhibited video installations informed by an interest in the intersection of biology and memory as it relates to the building of personal narratives. As an emerging artist, his video and installation works have been screened or exhibited regionally at the Metro gallery, 5th Dimension gallery, and West North gallery in Baltimore. He has also presented at the School of Visual Arts Annual Conference on Liberal Arts and the Education of Artists in Ney York. As an assistant professor of animation and interactive media at UMBC, he teaches courses in the areas of 3D animation and digital compositing.

CIRCA Catalyst is an ongoing series promoting conversations around transdisciplinary and interdisciplinary research that fuses the performing and visual arts with other fields of inquiry and scholarship. A catered lunch, with vegetarian options, will be provided by CIRCA (the Center for Innovation, Research and Creativity in the Arts).