What bodies know

In our hyperconnected, language-soaked digital lives it is easy to think that words are the key to knowledge. After all, large language models like ChatGPT seem strangely capable of knowing a world they have never experienced. But humans have always understood their cultures and the cosmos by moving through the world as embodied beings. This evening we explore the knowing of the body and how singing, dancing and deep listening enable us to expand our perspectives on life. We’re joined for this musical and conversational feast by Bernd Brabec, musicologist and anthropologist of sound; Ophelia Deroy, professor of neuroscience and philosophy; Tony Buck, renowned percussionist and improviser; and Magda Mayas, celebrated pianist and composer.

This event is presented in partnership with Enjoy Jazz.

Ophelia Deroy

Speaker

Ophelia Deroy is a leading expert in interdisciplinary studies about the mind. She is professor of philosophy and neuroscience at the Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, where she leads the Munich Interactive Intelligence Initiative. Before that, she was deputy director at the Institute of Philosophy in London, and still holds an associate research position there. Her research addresses core issues in the philosophy of perception, metacognition, social cognition and social epistemology. She explores why combining different viewpoints or inputs can sometimes lead to more accurate insights, higher certainty, or even better decisions – and other times, create ambiguity or reinforce biases.

Ophelia can be found on bluesky at @opheliaderoy.bsky.social‬

Bernd Brabec

Speaker

Bernd Brabec received his PhD in musicology from the University of Vienna, specialising in Indigenous music and ritual in the Ucayali valley in Eastern Peru where he spent five years among the Indigenous group Shipibo-Konibo. Bernd currently works as a researcher in cultural anthropology and teaches ethnomusicology at the University of Innsbruck. He has previously taught at Philipps-University Marburg, The University of Graz, and the University of Vienna. His current research is interested in areas of Indigenous vocal music, medical ethnomusicology, sonic ontology and auditory knowledge. His published work includes Die Lieder der Richtigen Menschen (‘Songs of the Real People’, 2015) and Sudamérica y sus mundos audibles (‘South America and its auditory worlds’, 2015).

Tony Buck

Artist

Tony Buck is an internationally-celebrated drummer, percussionist, improviser, guitarist, video maker and producer whose career has spanned over three decades. Australian born and Berlin-based, Tony is perhaps most well known for his work with the groundbreaking Australian trio The Necks, who have established themselves internationally as a distinct ensemble with a unique language exploring jazz and ambient improvisation. His work incorporates ongoing deep engagement with compositional density, movement and installation, with a diverse range of collaborators including Lee Ranaldo, Evan Parker, Keiji Haino, Otomo Yoshihide, John Zorn, Phil Minton, and the ensemble SPILL with pianist Magda Mayas.

Tony can be found on Facebook at Tony Buck.

Magda Mayas

Artist

Magda Mayas is a Berlin-based pianist, composer, and performer whose work over the past 25 years has redefined the sonic possibilities of piano performance. She has developed a distinctive vocabulary that explores both the interior and exterior of the instrument, employing amplification, preparations, and objects that serve as extensions of the piano itself. Mayas performs internationally, both as a solo artist and in collaboration with a wide range of musicians and composers, including John Butcher, George Lewis, Andy Moor, Phill Niblock, Zeena Parkins, Ikue Mori, Okkyung Lee, Nicolas Collins, Elliott Sharp, and Maja Ratkje. Her work has been featured at major festivals, including Maerz Musik, Documenta, the Berlin Biennale, and the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival.

Magda can be found on instagram at @mayasmagda

Brigid Hains

Host

Brigid Hains is the editorial director of Aeon Media. An environmental historian by training, she is driven by a deep curiosity about the natural and human worlds. The Sophia Club is a chance for Brigid to express her love of beauty and the arts, and to share the heartfelt dimensions of her intellectual life.