1. Introduction and Proposed Project
Introduction
Music influences movement through its expressive power within human behaviour (Sievers et al., 2012). The project further explores the connections between music, movement and emotional expression through a variety of dance styles. Its purpose is to teach students, specifically young performers, the different ways that they can express themselves through choreographed dances. Dance has become the leading art form to display emotion through movement, and therefore a growing demand for music that fits specific emotive moods across different genres. This project bridges the gap by providing emotionally led pieces for dancers to dance to.
Proposed Project
This project will be a collaborative effort with 4 dancers, consisting of 3 tracks that the dancers can explore emotionally. The idea behind this project is to showcase the different ways we can express ourselves through various emotions. The themes we intend to capture are emotions around isolation, pressure and release.
“Interpreters imbue their performances with emotional qualities, and listeners attribute
emotional meaning to different parts of a piece of music.”
Klaus Scherer and Eduardo Coutinho
This directly reflects the different themes I aim to explore in this project by using specific instruments such as pianos and strings to create themes of isolation and release.
Goals
The goals are to appeal to the younger generation and teach them that we can express ourselves through a range of art forms, such as dance. This project will teach the younger generation that dance can be a voice for those who struggle to express themselves through speech. We aim to directly demonstrate this through pieces that capture different emotions.
Personnel – Direct/Indirect
Reece Marpole – Project Manager/Music Producer
Mia Marpole – Lead Choreographer/ Dancer
Reece Marpole.
- I have been a Music Producer for 4 years and have produced a variety of genres, with my focus on EDM/ Dance.
- I have had experience in Mixing and Mastering for around a year.
- I have worked on several small-scale projects over the years, highlighting a few notable examples.
- A stop motion project which required a short piece of music.
- A nature-themed fashion show project where I had to compose original tracks and mash them up with pre-existing songs.
- She has danced with MRSOD for 13+ years.
- She has performed in several competitions, which include: – Chance2Dance, Alton Towers, Disneyland Paris, Her Majesty’s Theatre, The Super weekender and Prague.
- She has also performed in a variety of pantomimes, including Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, Aladdin, as well as many more rare production performances.
Personnel Continued:
Dancer 2 – Ellie Jones
Dancer 3 – Katie Ambler
Dancer 4 – Letizia Yeboah
Videographer/Editor – Gary Sturman.
2. Methodology and Rationale
Methodology and Rationale
I had this project in mind back in July/August when I wanted to compose music for dancers to dance to, whether for a show or to expand their portfolios. The initial idea was to collaborate with a dance school and see if they would use it for an upcoming dance show/ put on a night showcasing the talent. However, this turned into a single collab initially with just me and my sister, as she wanted to practice her choreography skills for her course. This then led to the recruitment of a videographer and a few other dancers to create a selection of dances targeting different emotive themes and genres.
I began with the creation of different styles to actively express different emotions through each piece. I took inspiration from artists like Odesza and OXALIS, whose music is predominantly known for its emotive themes. The first track I have created is going to have a choreography created based on the music and direction I initially took. However, the remaining tracks are going to work on a back-and-forth basis where the dancers inform my creative decisions.
Furthermore, I will send over demos and the progression of the songs to the team of dancers, where they can choreograph scenes for each segment of the music. We also ensure to take numerous videos to remind ourselves of the current stages, and so that we can see the dances coming to life. Once most of the dances have been choreographed, we will meet and discuss when the best time is to shoot the dances. Once all dances have been shot, our videographer/ editor will work to create an engaging/ expressive video.
Appendix 1: Gantt Chart Timeline
3. Market Analysis
Market Analysis
I investigated a wide array of videos on YouTube with a similar meaning/ direction to our project, and I stumbled across a few that resonated perfectly with the aims we were trying to achieve. Therefore, projects like Sia’s ‘Chandelier’ and ‘Elastic Hearts’ show similar themes of using emotion to tell a story through music (See Appendix 2). Given the success of these 2 videos combined shows that it’s impactful not just to the younger generation but to the older generation as well. Additionally, there are many dancers/ choreographers across social media platforms whose content is devised to show the importance of self-expression through dance. This proves that there is a demand for content/ short pieces that explore how we can express ourselves and tell stories through different genres.
Appendix 2: Sia – Chandelier.
Your Market/Target Audience
Primarily aimed at the younger generation (16-25) by creating an inspirational video to demonstrate how we can express ourselves in multiple forms. Additionally, this project suits students primarily, as these are the types of people who struggle mentally. This then gives them an insight as to how we can express ourselves through movement.
4. Costs and Budgeting
Hypothetical Budget
Hypothetically, we would need to hire the following:
- Studio – £15 – £40 an hour. (Dexterity Dance, 2021; School Space, 2025; Top Hat Theatre School, 2025)
- Camera – For a Sony a7iii, the cost is £40 – £50 per day. (Hygglo, 2016)
- Gimble – For a DJI RS2, the cost is around £14 – £17 a day. (Hygglo, 2025)
- 2 Tripods – £62.50 a day. (Hygglo, 2025)
- Producer Rates I would position myself at a range of £30-£50/hr while expanding my portfolio.
- Dancer Rates – £35 ph/ Pp
Potential Funding
If we were to receive funding for this project, these are the potential funding avenues we could explore further:
– The first opportunity is through the Arts Council National Lottery Project Grants. These grants can range from £1,000 to £100,00.
– The second opportunity could be for the Leche Trust and their performing arts grant, which is typically £4,000.
These are the two main grants that could fund our project; however, we would need to modify the project’s aims to be accepted by the Leche Trust. We would need to work with a registered charitable organisation, as they only accept charities and raise funds for their charity through the project. The main arts council funding is another viable option; however, the grants they delegate are considered too big for our project. Therefore, we would need to rather upscale our project and make it a larger project, or we could apply for smaller funds to accommodate the size of our project. We collectively decided that for this project, we wanted to stick to our current themes.
5. Inspiration and Influences
Inspiration and Influences
My inspirations are different from my typical influences and approach to music. The tracks will feature emotional themes; therefore, I draw inspiration from tracks that evoke different emotions. There’s not a particular set of tracks that I draw inspiration from; instead, inspiration comes from a broad range of tracks that follow the same general theme—for example, Odesza and OXALIS.
Mia and her team of dancers’ inspiration come from lyrical/ contemporary forms of dance, which correlate to a variety of dance types. Taking inspiration from lyrical and contemporary dance forms aligns well with our intentions.
Appendix 3: Song Inspiration.
OXALIS – Echoes of Silence.
Odesza – A Moment Apart.
Englaba.
Appendix 4: Super Weekender Dance Video
Appendix 5: Commercial Dance Video
6. Contingency/Risk Assessment
Contingency/Risk Assessment
I have two contingencies in place, just in case this project falls through. The first project will undertake a similar approach to the initial project by partnering up with the lead choreographer. This would include working together to create pieces of music that fit a solo narrative and explore different emotions through standalone pieces.
However, I also have another collaboration with my videographer, Gary. He has a client-based project he is working on for his final project, which would revolve around me creating a piece of music to which he would create a piece that would fit with the music.
Appendix 6: SWOT Analysis.
7. Potential for Development
Potential for Development
To develop this further, I would expand the team and bring in more dancers, composers and expand the production team to expand it into a single long-form show featuring tracks from different composers, maintain the same theme of emotional expression, but instead, we can format the show so that each song interlinks with one another and tells a story. To make any of this happen, we would need to source some funding
Furthermore, we could also develop this show into a touring show (if permittable with funding/ success) if there was a demand for it.
8. Evaluation Viability
Evaluation Viability
The questionnaire feedback provided clear insights into the project’s strengths and viability. The initial responses were overwhelmingly positive, with peers highlighting that it was an interesting, strong, and well-thought-out idea. This indicates that the project has a distinct and meaningful purpose. However, despite the project being well structured, there are 2-3 concerns throughout. The first concerns the influence of sound design and how it will be utilised to create emotion. It also highlights how mental health will impact the development stage of the project. Furthermore, they suggest I identify the specific instrumentation I plan to use to convey emotions or feelings, along with the use of experimental rhythms.
Additional challenges include the risk of dancers dropping out due to busy schedules and loss of interest. To combat this, I plan to keep an open-minded approach and be as proficient with communication as possible.
Appendix 7: Presentation.
9. Bibliography
Bibliography
Dexterity Dance (2021). Studio Hire – Dexterity Dance School Northampton. [online] Dexterity Dance School, Rhythmic Gymnastics, Acrobatics & Musokan Dojo. Available at: https://dexteritydance.com/about-dexterity/studio-hire/ [Accessed 11 Nov. 2025].
Hygglo (2016). Rent Sony A7iii + 24mm G master from Visionals U, Gipton & Harehills, Leeds for £26 – 40/day. [online] Fatllama.com. Available at: https://fatllama.com/uk/i/f60-sony-a7iii-24mm-g-master [Accessed 12 Nov. 2025].
Hygglo (2025a). Rent Sachtler Fluid Head Tripod x2 from Shutter Speed R, Little London & Woodhouse, Leeds for £29 – 50/day. [online] Hygglo.com. Available at: https://hygglo.com/uk/i/29d-sachtler-fluid-head-tripod-x2?from=2025-12-05&to=2025-12-05 [Accessed 25 Nov. 2025].
Hygglo (2025b). Ronnin SC 2. [online] Fatllama.com. Available at: https://fatllama.com/uk/i/hire-ronnin-sc-2-29285474 [Accessed 12 Nov. 2025].
Scherer, K. and Coutinho, E. (2013). How music creates emotion: a multifactorial process approach. [online] Available at: https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/3002879/1/S%26C_EPM_Chapter_Final.pdf [Accessed 3 Dec. 2025].
School Space (2025). School Space. [online] School-space.org. Available at: https://school-space.org/space/sou-southfield-school/dance-studio [Accessed 11 Nov. 2025].
Sia (2014). Sia – Chandelier (Official Music Video). YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vjPBrBU-TM [Accessed 3 Dec. 2025].
Sievers, B., Polansky, L., Casey, M. and Wheatley, T. (2012). Music and movement share a dynamic structure that supports universal expressions of emotion. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, [online] 110(1), pp.70–75. doi:https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1209023110 [Accessed 1 Dec. 2025]
Top Hat Theatre School (2025). STUDIO HIRE | TopHatTheatreSchool. [online] TopHatTheatreSchool. Available at: https://www.tophattheatreschool.co.uk/studio-hire [Accessed 11 Nov. 2025].
Appendices:
Appendix 8: Communication Log 1.
Appendix 9: Communication Log 2.
Appendix 10: Google Drive link for songs
