Related explorations in architectural and musical composition

Abstract

Architecture has been described as "frozen music." To be sure, architecture has many physically static features, yet it can best be understood as a process in motion and as motion. Both architecture and music share attributes of qualitative movement. A composition unfolds in phases of tension and repose, extension, and arrival. Explicit patterns of organization are defined by proportions, gradients of texture and intensity, and through the experience of space in time. RELATED EXPLORATIONS ... is an inquiry and a proposed demonstration of a parallel process of composition. A landscape, a sonata, and a building design are "composed" synesthetically with respect to their temporal qualities. An agricultural site in Northern Massachusetts is chosen for a new community of artists. The project accommodates artist housing, studios, workshops, and facilities for performances and exhibitions. Perceptual qualities of the site, programs, and formal strategies are illustrated with diagrams, notations, and original photography. Musical scores and design drawings are presented together to aid direct comparison of the mediums. A cassette recording of the sonata for violin in D-major is included with this submission (30 minutes). The cassette will be shelved with the thesis manuscript in Rotch Library.