Research On Musical Ideas That Shaped The Chinese Architecture Philosophy

Architecture, being considered as an aesthetic object, is on the same level with the art of music. While there have been a lot of discussions on the analogy between architecture and music, the academic researches concerning"architecture and music", written in Chinese language, are not booming until recent years. However, among the researchers, those majoring in architecture, as we observe by far, have seldom related their studies with the traditional Chinese music. This may due to the profundity and complexity of the ancient musical theory; besides, we are inclined to be blind to, at least part of, the traditional culture shared by both the Chinese architecture and music.Therefore, this thesis starts off at the point where most well-educated Chinese architects could stand. I took the initiative in examining the metaphor"Architecture is frozen music", trying to clarify its meaning and context, and thus exploring the relationship between architecture and music within the modern system of the fine-arts. As we may see, while the phrase"frozen music"clearly reflects the Western tradition, a voice from the traditional Chinese life remains immerged.One of the feasible approaches to explore, is to connect the fine-arts system to the traditional Chinese concept"yue", where evolved the aesthetic evaluation for the Chinese people. The different space-time conceptions between the West and East would be also under discussion. In fact, the above two points relate close to the taste and the perception of architecture. A third element about the Numerology could be introduced as well, for it played an important role in deciding the dimensions of buildings. Finally, this thesis takes case studies, on both literature and constructions: the architectural grammar book of Yingzao Fashi (1102), the Altar of Heaven (1749), and the Zither Rhythm Studio (1757). Either the theory or case studies in this thesis make great effort to articulate how the interplay of traditional Chinese architecture and music differs from the Western classical one. The thesis hence offers a new way to understand the traditional Chinese architecture philosophy.