Essay: Relationship between music and architecture

Introduction
Architecture and music have long been associated with: frozen music – frozen music was Goethe’s description of high architecture [Nikos Dontas, 2005], while music is often referred to in architectural terms – in Bruckner’s agreements we have descriptions such as: “cathedral”, the conductor “makes” and “builds” correlations. [Sven Sterken, 2007]
Theories surrounding the relationship between music and architecture are probably as old as the arts themselves. We can find social and cultural factors, which have been the kick-offs for creating different forms of composition: poetry, painting, music and architecture. For the same event, different forms of art can be developed, which present each one with its own expression. This dissertation tries to find analogies and parallelisms between two specific arts: architecture and music.
The connection is made at two levels: the methodological approach of synthesis and the correlation of common results with perception. Elements for the first correlation, we find already in the ancient Greeks, with their reflection on form and structure. The most manageable example is the theory of “harmonic proportions”. This synthetic rationalization finds its edge in the Renaissance, where a number of architects and composers tried to make architecture and music, according to the same mathematical principles. The second correlation, centered around the expressive quality of art, dates back to the 18th century [Sven Sterken, 2007]. At this level, beauty does not come from the intriguing form of art or its structure, but from the aesthetic influences it possesses. Paul Valery has told Eupalinos ou l’architecte that “architecture and music are different from other arts because they have the ability to rig people and this quality, comes from the fact that both of these arts have do with space “.
At both levels, the link between music and architecture is not their common attributes but relates to the existence of a third element that takes on the role of mediator between the two: mathematical proportions and the sense of space.
Below, we analyze the characteristics of the sound and logic of the system we use today. Then we will map the tools and the synthetic perception between architecture and music, which are the basic blocks of composition.
I. From Music in Architecture
I.1. Note
The music could be defined, as the result of a deliberate sound organization, in such a way as to combine both their tone style and their succession over time. From the very first moment of its existence, music was identified with the expression of various emotions such as joy, sadness, anxiety, fear, hope, etc.
Tone-Hue
The tone-hue of the sound (sound color), depends on how complex the pulsating vibrations that a sound source transmits.
One note corresponds to a specific oscillation frequency. When we hit a note to be heard, instead of having a clear frequency, there is a multitude of them. The name of the note will be determined by the base frequency and the combination of the rest will determine the complexity.
Frequency-Intensity
The acuity of a sound is proportional to the frequency, that is, the speed of repetition of the pulsating vibrations that cause it. Frequency measurement unit is Hertz. When we give a frequency to an instrument, we do nothing else than describe the number of oscillations at any moment. [Dave Benson, 2008]
The volume of the sound is proportional to the width of the vibrating vibration when it reaches the ear, e.g. the stronger a string is hit, the greater the oscillation, and thus the more intense the sound is caused.
Scale
Although we have defined what is a note and that it varies, only with these we cannot make a piece of music, we need a musical system. The musical system is a way of organizing musical sounds within the frequency spectrum. Of the most well-known and the oldest, it is that of Pythagoras and Aristoxenos, while what we use today is the mixed one.
Pythagoras, was a mathematician and the first man of ancient Greek science, named philosopher. Harmony (number in time) was one of the principles of the “Pythagorean quadruple” along with the numerical (net number), geometry (number in space) and physics (number in space and time). The Platonic tradition was meant to exalt the soul beyond the domain of subjective (glory), through the coordination of the dimensions and proportions contained in the harmony and the rhythms of music. This allows the soul to move from the dimension of knowledge (science) through the dimension of mathematical knowledge (intellect) to the dimension of the direct intuition of the world of pure forms and proportions. [Olsen, Scott, 2006]
Pythagoras with an instrument of his own inspiration (the monochord) managed to calculate the interval of octave and other relations of sounds. These relationships are proportional ratios and for this Pythagorean system it does not talk about frequencies. The simplest and most pleasant intervals are the octave and the fifth that come from the progress of Fibonacci approaching the golden section. [Ashton Antony, 2003]
It is noteworthy that until the end of the 16th century we used the Pythagorean system.
Pythagoras and Aristoxenos used mathematics to organize musical sounds and therefore music is indissolubly tied to mathematics.
I.2. Phrase
Music in general can be defined as the result of a simultaneous organization of sounds based on one’s tone pitch and on the other, their succession over time. The graphical representation of this organization must necessarily be based on these two interrelated dimensions (height, time), which can conventionally be presented as two axes x and y, where the succession and the duration of the sounds in time are represented by the horizontal x-axis, from left to right, while the various tonal heights of the sounds, which are heard alone or in concert with others, are represented by the vertical y-axis.
According to Amarantos Amarantidis [1990], the horizontal view of music has prevailed in the term Melodia, while its vertical view of the term Harmony despite the fact that in ancient Greece, the place of birth of these concepts, harmony meant successive organization of any “artistic” material, sounds, colors, words, etc., which requires the search for a symmetry. Indeed, the symmetry-analogy concepts coexist both in the very nature and in all the arts which in the initial stages of their development were intended to imitate it.
Melody, Counterpoint and Harmony are the three basic prerequisites for there to be what we usually call Music.
The Melody
Melody can be defined as a set of successive and varied levels of musical sounds, which have some special sound and rhythmic sequences and relationships, create a sense of a musical unity that is appropriate to satisfy both the spirit and the sensitivity of its listener and is the core of the composition of a musical piece.
The Counterpoint
Listening to a single melody that is not accompanied by other organized cohabitation is the main feature of monophonic music, but the fact that two or more melodies can be combined to be heard at the same time is the main feature of polyphonic music. Counterpoint is a technique that allows one who knows to knit two or more melodies in a way that they can be heard at the same time. [Amarantos Amarantidis 1990]
The Harmony
Harmony exists when two different acoustic sounds come to life, they sound at the same time. In harmony, agreement and disagreement are presented with a fundamental attribute based on a relationship stability between the accompanying musical sounds. This stability, which in simple words is often described as a soft-hearted listening has its opposite, that is, described as a hard-offending sound. It is obvious that such crises are subjectively and vary according to culture and era.
I.3. Music track
Case of Fugue
Fugue is one of the classic, old ways of composing and expresses a particular type of music. Composition doesn’t just lie in the counterpoint but follows a certain character with different parts that they look like the parts of a story (beginning-middle-end) but with more alternations.
In general, Fugue is a kind of musical composition based entirely on the imitation technique. Its main difference from the other musical genres is that its main theme is presented in succession by all the combined voices, with a relatively symmetrical periodicity in various tonalities which are more or less predetermined in advance [Karl Nef, 1991].
Golden Section
The structure of rhythm and harmony are based on proportions. These can be found in the progress of Fibonacci, which gives approaches to the golden section.
Besides sorting the frequencies, the golden section has also been used at a more general level to achieve the compositional balance. Using the characteristics of φ (about 1.62), the composers adjusted the length of the notes in order to obtain subdivisions of the golden section.
Patterns
Patterns are one of the links between architecture and music and offer both inspiration and technique. In addition to the decorative elements of a building, patterns have been used in the form of “pattern language” by architect Christopher Alexander as a method of architectural production.
Fractals
Fractals are a method of repeating a pattern in the sense of self-referencing. These are geometric shapes divided into pieces, each of which is a smaller scale copy of the whole. [David Wade, 2006]
Compositions using a fractal structure are usually time-based patterns. Based on a rule algorithm, they organize a pattern of notes in a repetitive sequence, reproduced like cells. This can lead to an uncontrolled situation but we can always go back and recognize the original pattern, as in all fractal structures. [Isabel Mundry, 2009]
The musical inspiration
The musical composers to create an opera or a concert, draw inspiration from a variety of elements of everyday life and not only. In this effort, musicians were forced to borrow concepts from philosophy and science.
Stochastic Music has been a basic tool in the composition of Xenakis. Xenakis, in order to achieve this process, used mathematical theories, such as probabilities, game theory, set theory and algebraic operations. [Ioannis Xenakis, 2001]
I.4. Architectural Tools
As in music and architecture, we meet specific rules that architects apply to their designs. Many rules are consciously imposed by the creator, and only the simple concepts that are considered as corresponding to those in the music are analyzed below.
These concepts are either the overall logic of the building or just a small part of it. Correspondingly, counterpoint can be an entire piece of music or a tool for creating a piece of music. The basic concept in both cases is that of symmetry.
Architecture uses symmetry regardless of culture or time period. There are many kinds of symmetry, many kinds of architecture, and many ways of reading an architectural project, meaning that the meaning of the concept is lost. The symmetry modes and their role in design are highlighted.
Repeat – Symmetry
Most types of symmetry show the concepts of repetition and similarity, while the lack of one means removal or even asymmetry. [David Wade, 2006]
Adding a third party and arranging them in sequence give a sense of pattern and repetition. Symmetry is held from the moment that the elements and their placement remain consistent.
Such devices are found in functional roles, such as brick walls and roof tiles.
Symmetry on a shaft
It is the most common form of symmetry that occurs in architecture. There are two types (Bilateral – Chiral), which both are the same and where they are not. [Kim Williams, 1998]
Bilateral: This kind of symmetry on a pivot is on the face of the Pantheon in Rome.
Chiral: A good example to understand is our hands and the architecture of St. Peter’s Square in Rome.
Rotate to a point
This form of symmetry gives a sense of movement and an emphasis on the center on architectural works such as the sacred basilica of S. Spirito in Florence, by Giuliano da San Gallo in the 15th century.
According to L.March and P. Steadman this category is divided into: “Cyclic symmetry”, “Dihedral Symmetry” and “Freeze Symmetry”. The differences in the first two are the center of rotation while in the third the way of repetition. [Gabriela Celani, 2004]
Symmetry in three dimensions
The third dimension can be produced in two ways: either by wrapping a two-dimensional pattern in the space, such as a sphere or a pyramid on the surface, or by applying to a three-dimensional object. [David Wade, 2006].
II. Perception process
II.1. Basic principles
How man understands the stimuli he receives from the environment has two things: With his physical limitations and how the brain works. These two things determine how our design product will “act” whether it be architecture or music.
The main objective is to emphasize the importance of the perception of space and sound so that we do not drift into inanimate connections, between design and act. So, there will be some points that highlight the main issues that have been affected in the perception of music and architecture.
Optical
The spectrum through which we see or hear is not always stable. For example, other colors may be perceived as similar when viewed through a different context.
It is exacerbated that even what we see under “normal” conditions is not what it is but what the brain thinks it is. Especially when we cannot see the real colors of an object.
Observing the above picture, we see how important it is to look at things, beyond our own reality, so that we can draw proper conclusions.
Musical
It is worth mentioning, as a composer in music, not only the genre but also the style. Leonard Meyer defines the musical style as follows: “The musical style is more or less complex systems of sound relationships that are understood and used by some”. [Leonard B. Meyer, 1956, p.45]
For Meyer style is a set of expectations. Different styles are models through which the listener learns to have specific expectations for the style of the music. Also, different styles can be associated with the language genealogy. For example, he considers that Bach and Beethoven represent different styles belonging to the same family-style, while Mozart and Machaut belong to different styles.
As in architecture, so in music there are definitions with the words baroque, rococo, goth, romantic. The name expresses a time and comes from the name that marked this period. The philosophy of each period has gone into the face of every art, architecture and music.
Specifically, Baroque music clearly emphasizes the ornamentation of the basic body of music and, with the advent of the classical period, these decorations have begun to disappear. It is obvious that comparisons are direct between architectural-Baroque and musical-Baroque as is the case for other species.
II.2. Psychology of Gestalt
The fundamental principle behind Gestalt’s perception is the “Pragnanz Law”, according to which we tend to organize our experiences in a way that is: regular, orderly, symmetrical and simple. Pragnanz’s thoughts have been concretized into categories, which help to predict some trends in specific cases. These rules are often called “Gestalt Laws”.
The Principle of Proximity
The first rule presented by Wertheimer [1938] is the Principle of Proximity, which states that “in a set of similar objects, those close to each other will create groups”.
The analogy in musical perception is when instead of space we put time as a factor and replace objects with notes. [James Tenney, 1977]
In the example above, the notes where they are closest, and those played together, create a sound group, while silence is their dividing line.
The Principle of Similarity
A second rule of Wertheimer [1938] is the Principle of Similarity, that states: “In a set of visual elements, those that are similar tend to form visual groups.”
In the example above, we can distinguish the different pieces of the song, creating groups depending on the complexity and tone. But many times, the complexion may come into conflict with tonality, whichever is more prevalent.
So, although tracks are very close to tonality, they will sound as separate because they have a very large difference in tone (case: yellow – red). Also, this grouping is even valid in their simultaneous arrangement (case: blue – green). [James Tenney, 1977]
The following diagrams on the horizontal axis show the time and the vertical one scale with various musical parameters per diagram. This aims to show a profile of the elements that create groups, but also to highlight them in the whole of the musical work.
The temporal proximity between the tones is shown on the horizontal axis, while the parametric relativity from the vertical. In the second example, clusters are formed about time closure, while in the third group the groups are related to the intimacy of the vertical factor.
The Principle of Intensity
One secondary rule, according to James Tanney, is the “Principle of Intensity”. This rule is directly related to what elements are considered by man to be more important among a set of elements and therefore more attention is paid to them. It is based on the “masking principle” that occurs when different gestalt rules conflict with each other, so we do not focus our attention somewhere in particular. With this rationale, we can “hide” a scheme where we would normally be immediately identifiable, so we put more information that leads to other conclusions.
Looking at an image, our eye tends to focus on the most intense objects. First, observes the basic subject and then goes on to examine the secondary. Usually, the main elements are also those that will be captured in memory. There is a hierarchy to the objects we see, emphasizing them with the greatest intensity.
The Principle of Intensity, therefore, has to do with the sound groups to which the listener gives more attention.
The general definition (including other parameters) is as follows: “In a set of sound elements, among which we have great differences in intensity value, attention will be focused on these groups at the highest price, since the other factors remain the same”. [James Tenney, 1977, p.41]
The Principle of Completion
There is still a fact that is related to the principle of completion or to the good shape. According to this principle, the eye tries to fill in the information gaps in order to create a more comprehensible shape.
Similarly, in music, there is “Music Expectation,” where the listener listens to a set of notes that normally form a chord whose main tone is omitted, but the listener’s ear is normally heard. This is fully consistent with Gestalt’s visual rules for completing.
In 1956, Leonard Meyer used the psychology of the Gestalt, according to “Music Expectation”, and reached corresponding rules: “completion – closure – good continuity. The concept of Expectation is treated by Meyer as a basic psychological need: “… the imperfect creates expectations for the perfect.” [Leonard B. Meyer, 1956 p. 128].
In 1977, Eugene Narmour, in an effort to show his objections to Schenkerian Analysis, made his own model of analysis based on Meyer’s work. His basic model is based on two basic assumptions in order to operate:
1. A + A -> A.
2. A + B -> C
A, B, C are melodic elements of any form, duration, color or tone. The first states that when two such elements are heard the listener waits for their repetition. The second means that when two different elements are heard, the listener waits to hear a third, also different.
Objective and Subjective Perception
An Objective Perception is defined: the reaction that occurs when particular groups of elements are shifted in front of the observer’s eyes. Objective perception is a dynamic element in the composition, as it is constantly changing and difficult to predict. [Max Wertheimer, 1938]
Corresponding to “objective perception” is also the “subjective perception” which describes the factors that affect the perception of the individual, which are related to his previous experiences, habits, knowledge, etc. This term is also referred to by Wertheimer [1938] but with a negative tone because of the unequal and overvalued importance given to him by previous psychological theories, which the gestalt theory was fighting.
In architecture, however, this review of the subject can happen on many levels. In an architectural work, the scale from which we see space is constantly changing because the volume of information is changing. The further we are, we focus our attention on the most basic features of architecture, those with the greatest intensity. But as we get closer, we are revealed more information that can get the most of our attention.
The physical terrain of the route can be parallel to Gestalt rules and how they affect the route. In particular, the behavior according to the other members of the group or the elements of the path affects the objective perception, while the knowledge from previous experiences, the subjective perception.
III. Music in Architecture
III.1. Xenakis: Common Mathematical Models of Architecture – Music
Xenakis was born in 1922 in Braila, Romania. He was very interested in music early on through his parents and especially his mother. Her death, when he was 5 years old, marked the composer. In 1932, he was sent to a boarding school in Spetses, where he studied Solfez and Synthesis and participated in the choir. After graduating in 1938, he moved to Athens where he continued his musical studies next to Aristotle Kountouroff and in 1940, he entered the National Technical University of Athens. [Alessandra Capanna, 2001]
According to Sven Sterken [2007], Xenakis approached architecture and music from a scientific and mathematical point of view. As a consequence, his musical and architectural compositions have a corresponding mathematical orientation. In his later work, the approach was more pragmatic, using space as a means to articulate the complexity of the musical language and to highlight the sound experience.
Le Sacrifice – La Tourette
As he became more experienced in architecture at the Le Corbusier office (1947-1959), Xenakis studied music composition with the French composer Olivier Messien (1908-1992). Messien advised Xenakis to find musical inspiration from his Greek roots, his studies as an engineer and his work as an architect. Applying this advice, he based his first pieces on two basic elements, Modulor and the use of the micrometer paper [Sven Sterken, 2007]
He used Modulor to organize time in a reasonable way. Based on the Fibonacci sequence (1,2,3,5,8,13 …) and the golden section, Modulor is a metric system used by Le Corbusier in 1950 to culminate in a neo-Pythagorean movement in Western European culture.
He applied this logic to the orchestral piece: Le Sacrifice (1953), where he produced the entire ensemble based on eight tones and eight durations whose prices were taken from the Fibonacci scale. [Sven Sterken, 2007]
Xenakis research on rhythmic patterns proved inspired in the design of the well-known “wavy glass panels” on the view of the monastery La Tourette.
Metastasis – Phillips Pavilion (Glissandi)
Xenakis resorted to the numerical proportions and to the Metastasis (1954) to determine the structure and microstructure. Metastasis are sound volumes based on simple straight lines, the glissandi. [Ioannis Xenakis, 2001]
The idea of continuous tweaking to move from one acoustic state to another (loud-gentle, high-low, fast-slow) without being readily perceived was his main concern at the time.
After the completion of Metastasis, Xenakis will create a dynamic architectural example inspired by Philips Pavilion’s double-curved surfaces in 1958 in Brussels.
The similarities between the Philips Pavilion and Metastasis have come from the same idea, namely the constant change between two characteristic situations.
III.2. Libeskind: The experience of space and music as an inspiration
Libeskind was born in Poland in 1946 and then left as a refugee for America where he obtained American citizenship. Both of his parents were of Jewish origin and survivors of the holocaust. As a young man, Libeskind learned to play the accordion and soon became a virtuoso.
In New York, he studied at the Bronx High School of Science, became an American citizen in 1965 and graduated in 1970 from Architecture. He worked in offices of major architects, such as Peter Eisenman (1972) and Richard Meier (1968). He has lived and traveled to many cities and countries in the world, such as Germany, Italy and Los Angeles, and has taught in many universities, such as Yale and Kentucky.
Libeskind completed his first building at the age of 52 (1998). Prior to this, critics considered his plans to be impossible to build and over-ambiguous. His first worldwide success was the Jewish Museum in Berlin in 1999.
His musical attitude
Architecture and music according to Libeskind need memory to connect the past with the present and the future, and that is something that unites them. Another point is that music is accurate and so architecture must also be.
“You cannot describe in about, a musical piece, you have to be specific,” he says, comparing a sheet music and a floor plan. [Helen Wallace, 2007]
In his speech in 2002 [BBC], Libeskind mentioned the myth of Orpheus, who when he played with his lyre in a wild and desolate place, the stones created a perfectly beautiful city. “It was not that music made time to roll faster, so it seemed like it was fast,” he said, “No, I really think that the music echoed on the stones and changed the composition and the space they surrounded”.
Music at the Jewish Museum
When Libeskind designed the Jewish museum in Berlin, he constructed three different models for it, hitting each one with a sonic blast. “I turned them into organs and listened to their tuning to find the music”. For Libeskind, the acoustics of a building are not just part of the process: “It’s the dimension of orientation. I always believed that without music, the architecture would die of suffocation, and without architecture the music would have no possibility. “[Helen Wallace, 2007]
At the Jewish Museum he wanted to find a way to refer to the violent detachment of Jewish culture from German life. Libeskind describes how he imagined this split: “I thought the museum should be cut off by something I call the gap”. [ Alessandra Capanna, 2009]
III.3. Steven Holl: Music as a Method
Ideas from different disciplines, as an inspiration for architecture, have been offered to us by Steven Holl. In particular, the transfer of elements from music to architecture has been pursued and implemented in Stretto House. Steven Holl used the elements of tonic continuity / discontinuity as material for this building.
According to Alessandra Capanna’s analysis [2009] Stretto House uses the rhythmic and spatial analysis of the concert: “Music for String Instruments, Percussions and Celesta”, one of Bela Bartok’s most important creations. The composition consists of four parts and shows a clear distinction between heavy, discontinuous percussion and lighter and streamlined strings. Similarly, the building also consists of four distinct but related parts.
One of the most interesting parts of the track is the stretto technique, which is used to move the fugato theme entrances until they are identified at the end of the track. During the track, the fugato style manifests itself with a constant trend of increasing the intensity (crescendo) to the entry of the celesta, from which begins a continuous sharp decrease of intensity (diminuendo) to the finale. Here the subject is presented with an imitation of reverse motion at the original rhythm. Respectively in Stretto House we see a corresponding time and spatial course.
In Stretto House the faces are between the 21+13-foot cement blocks that are typical numbers of the Fibonacci sequence. While rectangular windows follow a further subdivision of the same logic. Another element lies in the transition from one space to another. Correspondingly, from the entrance, the lounge, the exhibition and the second floor from the office, the studio, level changes.
The musical pieces, often referred the architects and are not always very clear, but the need arise to rely on the author’s words, which are usually full of poetic references. This makes the analysis process difficult and inaccurate. In Steven Holl’s building, it is necessary to simultaneously listen to the piece and to read the sheet music and the drawings.
III.4. Peter Cook: Music as an image
Peter Cook has drawn his designer experiences from the historic Archigram group. In the early 80’s, he participated in the process of graphically transferring the violin concert of Ernsest Bloch to the composition of an ideal city. [Alessandra Capanna, 2009]
“A simple exercise was the performance of a violin piece by Ernsest Bloch. I didn’t know the piece, but his writing seemed tempting. The notes became towers, pentagram streets and partitions became walls”. (Cook 1992)
The notes of the pentagram determined the position of the tall, cylindrical shape of skyscrapers, while the musical lines are the urban streets of the “street of the forerunner”. (Cook 1985)
For melody, the extension of the note is theoretically infinite, and takes on the role of smooth sound expression, offering a way in space for the time to complete the musical experience. The spatial and rhythmic cohesion are expressed as an evolution of the perspective of representation, you are perceived as a succession of events. Instead of an empty space, the road is the urban link that gives the feeling of continuity even with the presence of intense transversal elements. The streets of this city consist of three parallel pentagrams cut diagonally by a quarter, which implies: the existence of another external system, and the representation of all the polyphonic volume of an orchestra.
Cook strongly argues that “musical sequel” and “architectural sequel” have the same character: corresponding graphic elements, same expression elements, same editorial coloring. [Alessandra Capanna, 2009]
The dividing lines of the measures are represented as bridges. These separations define music and time in architecture and space. The notes are interpreted as towers. Indeed, in this piece, full of chords and trillions, the notes are the harmony of the piece. Unlike the horizontal movement of the melody, the tall buildings give the vertical tinge of harmony.
This fact has been very well expressed in this work where the towers, whose notes are so played, have a different shape than others: their cross section differs.
IV. Conclusion
The aim of this dissertation was to study the relationship between music and architecture with a more rational and realistic approach. The connection is initially through the study of the nature and structure of the music, as well as the ways of its transcription into an image. It examines the way in which music has been used as an inspiration or design by architects, but also the inverse, that is the transformation of the image and space into music.
Through this, some interesting conclusions were made both in terms of music and architecture and their relationship. The concept of music and the way it is structured became more understandable. From the note, we make the melody, after the song and finally the musical perception, which is understood by man as music. Frequencies control the note, the rules of composition control the musical piece, gestalt rules control how the listener perceives the final result.
“Dissemination” of techniques is an inevitable and desirable feature in the art. Music and visual perception, as well as sound and image, use the same rules and tools in their production process.
Architects who have tried to turn music into architecture have done it differently and based on different elements. These elements are related to the logic that man operates, while the rules of gestalt the ways in which man “wishes” to organize the visual and acoustic stimuli.
Xenakis, for example, borrows the logic and reflection of music and applies them to architecture. Peter Cook, transformed the image of a pentagram into an architectural display. Bainbridge and Libeskind saw the space as an ecumenical factor coming from both music and architecture. Generally, there has been a tendency for architects to use various elements of music as “instructions” that will “guide” them to the end result.
Clearly the study of music has been inspiration and has remained to the end, as a basic idea and a final result. The transfer of Bela Bartok’s music by Steven Holl was done by analyzing his parts in logical places like Fugue. Then these separable elements could be transferred to space and architectural elements. It continued with the rules of stretto’s counterpoint, the punctuation rules of the crescendo and the diminuendo, but also the changes in the tonicity of the organs. All this brought more effectively the character of the music piece into space and architecture.
The Theory of Gestalt and the techniques of repetition and symmetry proved to be common tools in both architecture and music. Through these, architecture is not limited to using music indefinitely as an inspiration. Also, music and space are not something univocal, since in human perception processes and manifestations are different. Finally, the synthesis techniques of the two arts have many similarities but also an immediacy in the interaction, both as initial inspiration and as a whole composition.