about

"Partitura—a musical score—is a meticulous 'plan of planning,' an invitation to infinite playfulness."

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Interdisciplinary Composer | Conductor | Educator | Researcher in Synesthetic Communication

www.composingcommunity.com | www.reflexivemusic.com

 

Keren Rosenbaum is a composer, conductor, and educator in curious about the intersection of music, communication, and synesthetic perception. She is the creator and pioneer of Reflexive Music and the Active/Attune Listening Playground - ALP/Playground Approach, a groundbreaking framework that transforms listening into a multi-sensory, co-creative process. Her work redefines music as a dynamic model for interpersonal communication, developing Synesthetic Communication—a method that integrates sound, movement, and emotion to foster deep connection and creative flow.

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With over 30 years of international performances, research, and interdisciplinary collaborations, Rosenbaum developed the conducting-via-earphones technique, featured in Notations21 book by Theresa Sauer, and continues to explore how deep, embodied listening can foster connection, transformation, and artistic innovation.

 

The Reflexive Music and Active Listening Playground (ALP)

Rosenbaum’s performative stage, the Active Listening Playground (ALP), serves as a living lab for performances, workshops, exhibitions, and festivals, offering participants an immersive experience in Reflexive Music. Her pioneering techniques challenge conventional music-making, encouraging deeper engagement and co-creation through synesthetic and multi-sensory communication.

 

Education and Early Career

Rosenbaum began her musical education at age 7 and later completed her studies at the Royal Academy in The Hague. She trained with leading mentors including Lev Kogan, Arie Shapira, Leon Schidlowsky (Tel Aviv); Louis Andriessen, Von Bergeijk, D. Man & Clarence Barlow (Netherlands); and earned her M.A. at Brooklyn College, New York, studying under Tania León and Amnon Walman.

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Founding the REFLEX Ensemble & Composing Community

In 1999, Rosenbaum curated her first interdisciplinary music festival and founded the REFLEX Ensemble, a global collective of musicians and artists recognized for their groundbreaking exhibitions, workshops, and performances. Reflexive Music—often described as "passionately inventive" and "on the edge"—paved the way for what is now the ALP/Playground Approach (Active/Attune Listening Playground).

In 2013, she founded Composing Community Global Organization (CCGO), home to Reflexive Music Practice and the ALP/Playground Approach. This platform supports creative development, interdisciplinary collaboration, and community-building through structured play and deep listening.

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Innovative Techniques in Contemporary Music

Rosenbaum’s contemporary notation systems and signature conducting-via-earphones technique are highlighted in Notations21 as groundbreaking tools for enhancing personal expression and collective aesthetic responsibility. Rooted in her own synesthetic experience (movement = sound = tactile = presence), her works are known for their immersive, unforgettable quality—often described as “a roller coaster ride.”

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International Recognition and Impact

Her methods and projects are implemented and studied globally in institutions such as Al Akhawayn University (Ifran), Tel Aviv University, The Arts University Helsinki, WE-ACT, Goethe Institute, Chelsea Art Museum (NY), Musicians Without Borders, Peace Corps, Streaming Museum, and Felicia Music Center.

In 2020, her ALP/Playground Approach was recognized as a new pedagogy by the Musical Library Institute of Israel (Felicia Center), marking a major contribution to democratizing music as a tool for human connection and learning.

 

Development of Synesthetic Communication and ALP/Playground

Rosenbaum developed Synesthetic Communication—a dynamic framework for interpersonal connection that merges sound, movement, and sensation. This theory, practiced through the ALP/Playground Approach, was supported by the Sibelius Academy (Arts University Helsinki) and incorporated into the University of Haifa as both a theoretical and therapeutic model, in collaboration with psychotherapist Miriam Ben Oz. Al Akhawayn University has adopted the ALP as a communicative and performative framework for arts-based education.

In 2019, Rosenbaum and CCGO launched the Executive Playground, bringing the ALP/Playground Approach into organizational and workplace settings. This initiative encourages cultural transformation, creative leadership, and reintegration of music into the everyday, supporting communities and teams through deep listening and playful collaboration.

 

Recent Work: Neurodiversity and Education

Rosenbaum’s current focus includes developing and applying the ALP/Playground Approach to support neurodivergent individuals and those on the autism spectrum. Through structured, sensory-based listening exercises, her programs provide safe, expressive environments that foster emotional regulation, communication, and interpersonal connection. She works closely with educators, therapists, and families to tailor the experience to each participant’s needs. She also teaches an academic course at the University of Haifa, where she trains professionals in applying the ALP/Playground Approach across therapeutic, educational, and developmental settings, bridging research and real-world practice.

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Since 2021, Rosenbaum collaboration with the Felicia Blumental Center for the Art of Sound (Tel Aviv, produced numerous programs and community projects that adopt the ALP Approach as a new model for music pedagogy and participatory education.

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Philosophy & Vision

Rosenbaum’s work emphasizes that communication is not merely verbal, but inherently synesthetic—a layered exchange of presence through sound, movement, and emotional resonance. Her approach celebrates playfulness as a core mode of being, an infinite invitation to explore, connect, and transform together. Through the ALP/Playground, she continues to reshape how we listen, relate, and create—in music and in life.