Anne Blaich
Rhythm of Language is a video-based work
centered on the temporal structure of human speech.
At its core, a metronome sets the pace—serving as a visual and auditory reference
for the rhythm that underlies spoken language.
Accompanying this steady beat are ten different voices, all articulating the same sentence.
Through their variations in tone, accent, and timbre, the piece highlights both the diversity and the underlying uniformity of speech.
Inspired by the research of David Poeppel, the work allows viewers to experience
a key insight firsthand: despite their apparent differences, all languages share a common rhythmic structure. By making this principle perceptible, the installation bridges scientific research and sensory experience.
Who did I cooperate with for this video?
Prof. David Poeppel is a cognitive neuroscientist
known for his research on the neural basis of language and speech processing.
His work combines neuroimaging, psycholinguistics, and computational modeling
to understand how the brain processes auditory and linguistic information.
He developed the "asymmetric sampling in time" hypothesis,
which explains how the left and right hemispheres process speech
at different temporal resolutions.
David also explores how rhythm and timing in speech contribute
to language comprehension and production.
David provided the scientific input for these video.