Velocity of Body Movement: Generating Architectural Space by Musical Paces

While the generative ideas largely broaden our horizon for creating in architecture, music, and other art fields, it could be noticed that, little attention has been paid on the potential possibilities of bonding architecture and music together. Don’t we experience the linear sequences that are common both in space and music? In this regard, why not generate architectural spaces by a certain musical, temporal code? By reinterpreting some early Chinese written accounts (dating from 3rd century BC) on the experience of ritual motion, this paper seeks to explore the ancient sensibilities in a new key, with three strategies weaved into the text. (1) examining the ancient Chinese attitudes towards the reciprocal relationship between architecture, music, and motion, and taking them in new directions. The velocity of body movement is reconstructed to be central to the perception of architectural space. (2) contextualizing Chinese literatures with Western sources. For example, the Greek myth as well as a tale narrated by Goethe could contribute to a broader understanding of architectural as “frozen music”. (3) generating architectural spaces by presenting different ways of rhythmic body movement in/through the buildings, where the pace/tempo is shown to be the basic measurement unit in both architecture and music. 1