Yet We Laugh

yet we laugh is a musical lecture in which the Brazilian artist Gabriel Lemos tries to explain to a computer and the audience what laughter could mean to a human being. Based on text and sound, the program is an experimental piece where the audience can witness the artificial learning process of a machine attempting to laugh while reflecting on humor's complex embodied and cultural phenomena. This performance mixes speculative electronic music and speech to comment on the effects of laughter and the entanglement between humans, language, and technology.

Gabriel Francisco Lemos (Sao Paulo, Brazil) is a composer, visual artist and researcher based in Berlin working at the intersection between performance and composition in interdisciplinary contexts. His work concerns sound, language, and technological mediation in its contemporary form. Since 2010, he has participated in São Paulo’s experimental music and art scene, presenting his work at the International Electroacoustic Biennale of Sao Paulo, Novas Frequências Festival, Pinacoteca of Sao Paulo, VideoBrasil and the SP Jewish Museum. He had compositions premiered at festivals, events, and exhibitions in London (Whitechapel Art Night and Delfina Foundation), Holland (Gaudeamus Festival), Germany (Savvy-Documenta, Cashmere Radio and Archipelago Lab), Monaco (Monaco Electroacoustique), and Portugal (Peles International Drum Fest). His research has received funding from FAPESP, DAAD, and Capes.