Scientific research on creatives and creativity













Academic collaborators

       






12/2025 - ongoing

Quantum Sound at Fabric
The first neuroscience study inside world-renowned nightclub Fabric London







Photography by Stefan Hanegraaf

Team

Research

Oliver Durcan, Dr Peter Holland, Prof. Guido Orgs, Miles Comer, Oran Gottlieb, Jolie De Waal, Albane Arthuis, Anna Stewart, Francesca Mamino, Anna Mankowska, Safiyyah Nawaz

Operational and Technical
Bianca Mayhew, Oliver Durcan, Dr Peter Holland, Luke Laws, Mike Becker

Partners
Goldsmiths University of London, Mastery, London Warehouse Events (LWE), Fabric London

Press
Inverted Audio | February 2026
Music Radar | February 2026





Background
Quantum Sound is an event series from Mastery. The first neuroscience study to take place inside Fabric, the world-renowned London nightclub, was conducted at the launch of its album, Mastery: Quantum Sound - eleven tracks of drum-free, ambient music on Houndstooth Records, featuring Djrum, Wata Igarashi and Alessandro Cortini, among others. The study forms part of an ongoing research programme investigating sound-induced altered states of consciousness, in collaboration with Mastery.

Deep listening can produce altered states - merging with, dissolving into, or losing yourself in the music - much like those mapped in psychedelic and flow research. The study set out to find a measurable signature of these states in the brain, and to relate it to the music driving them.

Methods
Listeners heard the album twice, in two very different settings: once on Fabric's Room 1 sound system at the launch event in Fabric, and once on headphones in an EEG lab. Their brain activity was recorded as they listened, and afterwards they traced how the experience shifted, giving a felt account to set alongside the brain data. We then analysed that data using a method called microstate analysis.

Data Dashboard
We have built an early, interactive preview of that analysis, shown below. It focuses on Bliss Code 000, the album's opening track and the piece we analysed in this first pass. Bliss Code 000 is a unique collaboration of practices, where ancient sound-therapy instrumentation meets electronic sound design and modular synthesis.

Each line in the player represents one of several recurring patterns of whole-brain activity, momentary configurations the brain moves between many times a second; the higher a line sits, the more that pattern is present at that point in the music. Press play to watch the lines move against the music, and switch on the topographic simulation, built from real recordings to simulate what the brain dynamics actually looked like across the scalp.



What we found
This is a first pass through a rich dataset, so what follows is preliminary and subject to further checks. Two relationships stood out. The first centres on a single recurring pattern, labelled "microstate E" in the player above and shown there in blue. Its presence over time rose and fell in step with the orange line, which records how strongly listeners reported feeling they were part of the musical features. Of all the patterns measured, Microstate E was the only one to correlate with this feeling, although Microstates A, B, and C are also shown for comparison.

The second relationship is one you can explore for yourself. As Bliss Code 000 plays, watch the blue Microstate E line: it tends to climb as new sounds and layers enter and grow, and to ease as the musical features clear. Look at the moments where it peaks, dips, rises and falls, and listen for what the music is doing there. Further analysis is needed to quantify exactly what in the music is shifting at these points. 

What it suggests
These observations are intriguing because of what microstate E has been associated with elsewhere. In other research it has been linked to the brain's salience network - the system that picks out whatever matters most in a given moment, integrating signals from the outside world with sensations from inside the body. That offers a natural reading of a brain state responding to new musical information arriving, and to the feeling of being drawn into it.

A neural marker like this hints at a way to read musical attention and embodiment directly from the brain. If it holds up as the research develops, that could open practical uses: tools that help music studios gauge how a mix holds a listener, techniques for shaping live sets and the spaces they happen in, and sound designed more deliberately for focus or relaxation.

A full technical manuscript, with the complete analysis and statistics, will be written up and shared with the research community at a later date.

To follow the project as it develops, sign up for updates using the form on this page. For specific questions, you are welcome to contact the project manager, Oliver Durcan, using the contact details at the foot of the site.

Further reading
Custo, A., Van De Ville, D., Wells, W. M., Tomescu, M. I., Brunet, D., & Michel, C. M. (2017). Electroencephalographic resting-state networks: source localization of microstates. Brain connectivity, 7(10), 671-682.

Tarailis, P., Koenig, T., Michel, C. M., & Griškova-Bulanova, I. (2024). The functional aspects of resting EEG microstates: a systematic review. Brain topography, 37(2), 181-217.

Yaden, D. B., Haidt, J., Hood Jr, R. W., Vago, D. R., & Newberg, A. B. (2017). The varieties of self-transcendent experience. Review of general psychology, 21(2), 143-160.
02/2026 - ongoing

Jon Hopkins - Embodiment Breathing with Fearne Cotton
A HD-EEG study on the effects of high-ventilation breathwork on music perception







Photography by Stefan Hanegraaf

Team

Research

Oliver Durcan, Prof. Tristan Bekinschtein

Operational and Technical
Bianca Mayhew, Oliver Durcan, Shehryar Ahmad, Alejandra Rios, William Russell, Alessandra Denegri

Partners
University of Cambridge, Mastery, MONOM Studios, London Warehouse Events (LWE)





Background
Does high-ventilation breathwork change how we perceive music? Most breathwork research concentrates on the breathwork period itself. In the project, we were interested in what comes after - how the residual altered state shapes the music experience that follows. Specifically, how dimensions such as flow and oceanic boundlessness shift during music listening in the wake of breathwork-induced, psychedelic-adjacent effects.

The work centres on Jon Hopkins' Embodied Breathing, a 21-minute breathwork practice and sound meditation with guidance from Fearne Cotton, released by Mastery on Houndstooth Records (vinyl only). The piece combines Breath of Fire and Conscious Connected Breathing, followed by a new ambient composition by Hopkins.

This study was conducted during a live Mastery event at Funkhaus, Berlin. The breathwork piece, produced by Jon Hopkins and guided by Fearne Cotton, was followed by a live performance featuring Jon Hopkins and a special guest ensemble. All audio elements were spatialised in 4DSOUND by MONOM.

Frustrated by the lightweight sound palette that dominates much breathwork music, Hopkins set out to create something heavier and more grounded — a slow, hypnotic techno piece that connects new-age practice and the club, two worlds that, in terms of consciousness expansion, share far more common ground than is recognised. Flowing from this is a deep meditation designed for decompression and integration after the breathwork, built from extended drones and frequencies.

When the audience emerges from the embodying breathwork practice, Jon Hopkins takes over with a longform piano improvisation, with Maddie Ashman on cello, live effects and vocals, and Leo Abrahams on guitar. With the breathwork having prepared both the performers and the listeners, the music will be experienced in a more open, unboundaried state.

Methods
High-density EEG data was collected across two settings. Live at Funkhaus Berlin, during the concert with roughly 1,600 attendees; and privately at MONOM Studios, comparing spatial and stereo mixes. Two advanced breathwork facilitators were recorded across active conditions (full participation) and passive conditions (instructions only, no engagement), yielding music-perception data both with and without preceding breathwork effects.

Alongside EEG, the project used Temporal Experience Tracing (TET), developed by Tristan Bekinschtein and Barbara Jachs at Human Experience Dynamics and the University of Cambridge. Rather than collapsing a temporal experience into a single Likert score, TET captures how experience unfolds dynamically, giving detailed context for identifying key events in the EEG time course.

Next steps
The acquired data is currently undergoing analysis.
05/2026 - ongoing

Modulating Conscious States with Low-Frequency Sound
Psychological profiling of Stefanie Egedy's subwoofer installations







Team

Research

Oliver Durcan, Stefanie Egedy

Partners
Kunstfestspiele Herrenhausen, Disk Agency, Haus der Elektronischen Künste (HEK), Sumor Festival





Background
Creative Empirical is investigating the psychological effects of low-frequency sound in collaboration with sound artist Stefanie Egedy from May 2026. Audience surveys will be conducted at several of Stefanie's installations including BODIES AND SUBWOOFERS (B.A.S.) at KunstFestSpiele Herrenhausen, Germany; SONIC ENERGETICS at Haus der Elektronischen Künste (HEK), Switzerland; and a new installation at Sumor Festival, Wales.

States such as awe, ego dissolution, mystical experience, and relaxation are well documented in research into extreme aesthetic experiences, yet the role of low-frequency sound in producing them remains largely unexamined.

The principal obstacle has been experimental control. In most settings, low frequencies are inseparable from music and other confounding variables. This study addresses that problem through a collaboration with sound artist Stefanie Egedy, whose installations provide a well-controlled test case. Egedy works exclusively with subwoofers, designing sound rather than music in the low-frequency range, which isolates low-frequencies as the variable of interest while retaining a naturalistic experiential context.

Methods
The study addresses two questions: what mechanisms shape the experience of low-frequency sound, and whether sustained exposure produces measurable psychological state changes. Pilot data is being collected to characterise the conscious-state profiles associated with prolonged low-frequency sound exposure, with a focus on awe, ego dissolution, mystical experience, and relaxation, alongside measures of expectancy and prior exposure. Visitors to the installations are invited to complete a short survey before and after the experience. No prior knowledge or preparation is required.

By applying validated measures from psychedelic and aesthetic-experience research to the underexplored domain of low-frequency sound, the study aims to establish an evidence base for the effects of low-frequency sound on listeners. Further updates will follow.
10/2025 - ongoing

It’s Time To Talk
A survey on mental health in the Indian music industry







Team

Research

Dr George Musgrave, Oliver Durcan, Megha Balani, Kripi Malviya, Senjuti Maitra

Operational and Technical
Shilpi Gupta, Megha Balani, Kripi Malviya, Senjuti Maitra

Partners
Goldsmiths University of London, Global Music Institute, Tavta





Background
Creative Empirical is leading data analysis for It's Time To Talk, the first ever national mental health survey of India's music industry.

It's Time To Talk is a collaborative research project conducted by the Global Music Institute (India), TATVA (India), Goldsmiths, University of London (UK), and Creative Empirical (UK), with support from partners including the Indian Performing Right Society (IPRS), Women of Music India, Aurora Collective, Hyundai, and Rolling Stone. The study aims to understand the health and wellbeing of people working in India's music industry, fostering new cultures of care and creating tailored forms of support to address industry-specific needs and challenges.

Methods
It’s Time To Talk is a quantitative cross-sectional survey for anyone in the Indian music industry. It is designed to test associations between demographics, industry status, industry-specific experiences and impressions and mental health. Creative Empirical leads on data analysis and statistical reporting of research findings for new industry training materials, industry reports, and peer-reviewed academic publications in global health.

Next steps
The findings will support evidence-based action within the music industry while also contributing to wider academic and policy discussions.

Data acquisition is complete. The data is currently undergoing analysis.
10/2025 - ongoing

Creative Studios as Public Health Assets
A survey on the psychological impact of the 2025 SET Woolwich studio closure







Team

Research

Oliver Durcan, Sven Mündner, Roland Fischer-Vousden, William Winchester

Partners
SET, Beispiel





Background
In August 2025, members of SET Woolwich were given notice that their studios would close. SET is an artist-led organisation that runs several studio centres across London. The Woolwich site, which opened in January 2021 in Riverside House spanned 140,000 square feet across roughly fifteen floors, housing almost 300 artist workspaces and over 600 artists at its peak.

Studio rents began at £0.90 per square foot per calendar month, fully inclusive of utilities, business rates and broadband, and rose to £1.10 in later years - between £10.80 and £13.20 per square foot per year. For comparison, Acme Studios, the largest provider of affordable artist studios in England, supported 853 artists across fifteen buildings at an average inclusive rent of £13.76 per square foot per year in 2023 (Acme Studios, 2023). Forma, another London-based provider, let studios at £22 per square foot per year. Open-market commercial workspace in inner south-east London ranges higher again.

SET Woolwich was the most affordable artist studio provision in London during its operating life: even at its highest rate, it sat below the Acme average. Many of the artists who held studios there could not hold studios in London at any other price point. Therefore, the closure announcement did not represent only the loss of a particular workspace; it represented, for a substantial number of those affected, a question about whether they could continue their practice in the city at all.

This report examines the wellbeing impact of that announcement on SET Woolwich members. It draws on a survey of 167 members, administered shortly after the announcement, using the WHO-5 Well-Being Index (Topp et al., 2015) as its primary outcome measure, alongside questions about how the studios and local surroundings were used by members.

Next Steps
The data acquisition and analysis are complete. The results are currently being written up.
01/2025 - 03/2025

Flow State with HAAi at Outernet London
An immersive 360° rendition of HAAi’s neural activity during musical performance







Team

Operational and Technical

Oliver Durcan, Callum Pearson, Bianca Mayhew, Dana Leonard


Background
Creative Empirical recorded and transformed HAAi's brain activity into CG visuals for Flow State, a three-minute film directed by Callum Pearson, showcased on Outernet London's immersive 360° display.

Flow State was produced by female-led production company Only Child, in partnership with Youngest Sibling, and female-owned sound and immersive experience company Mastery. It premiered at Outernet on 11 March 2025 and played in the Now Trending building throughout March as part of Outernet's International Women's Day programming.

Diving into the creative mind of musician and producer HAAi, the film visually explores the neuroscience behind music performance, capturing her brain activity in real time as she performed a stripped-back rendition of her single Can't Stand to Lose (released on Mute). Filming inspired Can't Stand to Lose (hard soft rework) by HAAi and Tom VR, released on 11 March 2025 to coincide with the film.

Methods
Creative Empirical recorded EEG data, a technique that measures electrical activity across multiple brain regions, with the goal of capturing the cognitive state of deep focus known as the flow state. The recorded brain data was then translated into visuals by digital artist AMIANGELIKA using TouchDesigner, with VFX by Zero One Creative, resulting in an immersive and hypnotic film experience.

Flow State premiered at Outernet London in March 2025. For more information, visit Outernet London.

Creative Empirical partners with creative organisations to generate evidence about psychological impact.



We bring together project-specific teams of leading academics and practitioners to design and deliver cutting-edge research studies that generate robust evidence. Our expertise spans quantitative methodologies (including neural, physiological, moving-image, and large-scale survey approaches).

Founded in 2025 by researcher Oliver Durcan during his PhD, Creative Empirical was created to offer a level of research integrity, precision and expertise rarely found outside academia. Many research practices in the creative industry rely on qualitative or interpretive methods that, while valuable, can struggle to produce consistent, comparable, and bias-resistant data. Our approach uses experimental research design, inferential statistical methods, and advanced machine learning to produce results that are both scientifically robust and practically actionable.

By translating subjective experience into a quantifiable language, we give partners a deeper and more reliable picture of their psychological impact and the psychological landscape they work in. Our research spans the neuroscientific mechanisms underpinning creativity and altered states of consciousness through to the wider effects of arts engagement on wellbeing and public life - enabling organisations to demonstrate impact, inform policy, secure funding, and innovate with confidence.

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