Taste [from Middle High German gesmac, “scent, smell, stench, taste”]

It is no coincidence that the term “taste” describes not only a sense but also personal preferences, through which we in turn feel a sense of belonging to certain groups. Whether on the tongue or in the abstract: we distinguish characteristics and define our place.

The sense of taste protects living beings from poison by serving as a testing mechanism for food. The human tongue contains taste receptors for sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami. Other sensory cells may be able to directly detect fats; research is far from complete. When we talk about the taste of food, however, we mean far more than just the information provided by our tongue; we evaluate a complex interplay of smell, taste, touch, temperature, and pain stimuli. Sight and hearing, as well as memory, emotion, and our cultural environment, are also closely intertwined with the culinary taste experience. How we evaluate what we taste depends on our socialization. The culture that surrounds us sets the framework for our very personal preferences.

How do we orient ourselves through taste? What does a place taste like? Where do you draw the line between pleasure and disgust? What does the scent of mushrooms sound like? What flavors does the earth itself conceal? What happens to traditional music when it is shifted into the contemporary realm of taste evaluation? How do dishes change when they’re served with sound and visuals? How does the way we eat change the way something tastes?

Through exhibitions, concerts, performances, workshops, and lectures, the festival for multisensory perception sens taste, running from November 25 to December 2, 2026, combines artistic perspectives with science and technology, allowing visitors to experience multisensory interconnections.