Musical improvisation and space

This study is based on an experiment conducted during a pilot artistic research project aiming to discover how interactive processes between musical improvisation and space are experienced and conveyed by musicians and listeners. The experiment included three cases of musical improvisation in different spaces with Estonian pianist and composer Raun Juurikas and his fellow musicians. In a conceptual sense the study relies on Friedlind Riedel’s term of atmospheric relations and the performative paradigm of Barbara Bolt. The core of the article is formed by the presentation of the reflections of the improvisers and the short essay-format writings by two observers. Finally, the experiences are discovered as performative forces producing atmospheric relations.