Frissons in Dance

Abstract

Musical frissons (or chills) have been at the forefront of both philosophical and psychological research on audience responses to music. The aim of this article is to argue that frissons also play an important role in the experience of dance performances. Following Jerrold Levinson's distinction between sound-quality frissons and sound-structure frissons, the article zooms in on the concept of conflict-induced frissons, which feature prominently in a variety of art forms besides music, from film to literature, and it is of crucial importance for understanding the audience reaction to some dance performances. A case study of Pina Bausch's choreographies is given to illustrate this point.