Sound production depends on two factors; resonating volumes and choice of materials. Musical instrument tectonics is based on the size, shape, and volume of the resonating chamber and the qualities of the materials used. This is the reason why steel stringed folk acoustic guitars sound different than nylon string classic guitars, and why both sound incredibly different than the nylon string middle eastern 'ud (the lute's precedent). The decisions made in both factors affect the reverberation time and the tonal quality of the sound produced.
The same could be argued with architecture. An instrument is merely a device that amplifies the sound, so architectural spaces could be seen as large scale instruments. In concert halls, the acoustics of the space is considered to be the last piece of the puzzle that synergizes the orchestra and blends all the musical instrument so it is perceived as one artifact, as opposed to fragmentary musical lines played collectively. This means that any concert performance would sound slightly different according to the space that it is being played it, as each concert hall as a unique acoustical identity. Aside from concert halls, every architectural space carries sound different than its neighbor. Granted that with small scale rooms these changes in aural quality are not noticed as much, but sound is definitely an influencing factor that affects our perception of space. A CD titled "music and architecture: the sound inside" provides a number of musical performances, recorded live in iconic architectural spaces, each space chosen to highlight its associated musical piece's unique aural qualities.
Architecture, at times, has even contributed to the creation of music. The birth of the gregorian chant is credited to the proliferation of space in the gothic cathedral. Cathedrals were the acoustic twins of large natural caverns. Blesser and Salter (authors of "spaces speak, are you listening?") have noted that the volumes of some caverns in the Czech Republic approach 50,000 cubic meters, which are comparable to the volume of a cathedral. Both are large enclosed spaces with irregular geometries, randomly shaped surfaces, minimal acoustic absorption, and uniform diffusion of sound arriving from all directions.
It may seems obvious that the creation of such vast acoustical resonance chamber for cathedrals would be intentional to convey a religious / spiritual message or connection. The history of the evolution of sacred spaces in Christianity would prove otherwise. Before Emperor Constantine declared Christianity as the official religion of the Roman Empire in BC 313, Christians would congregate, secretly, in abandoned large spaces within their region. These spaces were typically Greek basilicas, that had once served as courthouses and commercial meeting places. These spaces were usually rectangular in shape and were defined by two rows of columns. After the Imperial adoption of Christianity, walls were added for protection from the weather and to display political power. This was a major change in the quality of the aural space.
Within the next few centuries, the growth of Christianity prompted the need for larger congregation spaces. These spaces had increasing floor areas and dramatically high ceilings (some would argue that these figural spaces were a symbolic connection to a higher power). The surface materials were usually made of stone, which replaced the use of wood, as a result from advances in building technology, and because stone was resistant to fire. The resulting acoustics was thus unintended. The acoustics were terrible for speech; as the priest spoke to his large congregation, his words, if heard, would blend into one another due to the vast reverberation time (Blesser and Salter note it to approach 10 seconds for middle frequencies). However, such spaces can be used to create sounds that pleases the ear. If one was to speak in long tones (sing slowly), the blending between one tone and the other could sound harmonious, and thus the communication here becomes a musically tonated one, and not the spoken word. This segues into the birth to the Gregorian chant.
The interesting thing about reverb, is that the ears detect a slight harmonizing tone alongside the original one thats being voiced. The tonal difference between the original tone and the harmonic one is a perfect fifth (more on that when musical scales musical scales and harmony would be discussed), creating a common chord that is used throughout western music, and which pop/rock music refers to as the "power chord". This slight harmony was picked up by the chanting monks, and exploited even furthur in their chanting. The choir could be divided, each group singing a different harmony line, and these tones would just blend into one another, creating beautiful musical chords. Ofcourse, each space has its own reverberation time, so the choirs belonging to each church would compose their music accordingly.
In Experiencing Architecture, Steen Eiler Rasmussen talks about two other composers who have used spaces as a generator of their musical compositions. The Byzantine church of S. Mark's in Venice was Giovanni Gabrielli's instrument. The church is built over a Greek cross plan and has five domes, one in the center, and each of the four arms of the cross. S.Mark's had two music gallerires, one to the right and the other to the left, as far away as possible with their domes acting as mighty resonators. Gabrielli made use of this, by letting the music come from both sides, one answering the other, in his Sonata Pian e Forte. The congregation did not hear two different orchestras, but heard two musical rooms, each responding to one another in counterpoint, or as Rasmussen puts it "one speaking with silver tones, the other responding in resounding brass." The congregation was placed underneath the central dome, which served as another instrument, or blending spaces that connects the music coming from the left and right.
The St. Thomas church at Leipzig was Bach's instrument. This church was not known for its vast reverberation time. After the Reformation, large areas of resonant wood were added to the naked stone, the side walls were lined with tiers of wodden galleries, and curtains were added at openings of the new added private boxes. All elements that resorb sound and not reflect it. Playing the soft slow blending tones of the gregorian chant would seem boring and less enchanting, as such tones would not sustain or resonate in space for very long. Hope Bagnel, the famed acoustician and author of "Planning for Good Acoustics", figures the reverberation time of the church to be 2.5 seconds, as opposed to 6-8 seconds in standard medieval churches. Bach had to find different ways to how his composition would be as enchanting and awe inspiring. The resultant musical compositions gave birth to the Cantata and Passion. Bach's famed inventions were thus much more musically complex, with alot of use of counterpoint, where two very distinct musical lines, played in relatively fast speed, could be listened to simultaneously, without the notes blending into one another to form a cacophonic mess.
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