Architecture meets electronic music. Kraftwerk performing 3-D The Catalogue. Ph. Boettcher.
Music – Rhythm, composition, dynamism, symmetry, digital technologies, urban vibe, and a vibrant industrial imprint. These are just some of the features that architecture and electronic music have in common. We selected ten great projects, including Brian Eno’s music for airports and world expos, The Chemical Brothers’ brutalist choreography, and Röyksopp’s exploration of urban rituals and the “archit-teque” projects of iconic Berlin club Berghain.
• RELATED STORIES: Discover more music-related architecture and design on Archipanic…
Electronic Pavilion by Le Corbusier and Iannis Xenakis
PHILIPS Pavilion by Iannis Xenakis @ Expo 58.
In 1955 engineer and musician Edgar Varèse composed Poème électronique, probably the first electronic piece in the history of music. The abstract dynamism of the composition inspired Le Corbusier’s collaborator Iannis Xenakis to create the hyperbolic structure of the PHILIPS Pavilion at Expo 58 in Brussels. Inside, Le Corbusier created an immersive installation with futuristic projections tuned with Poème électronique innovative soundscapes. Watch video.
Brian Eno • Music for Airports… and World Expos
The Origin of Energy, UK Pavilion @ Astana Expo 2017 – All photos by Luke Hayes – courtesy of the UK Pavilion.
In 1978 music producer and musician Brian Eno composed Music for Airports, a sound project designed to be continuously looped in airport terminals to defuse travelers’ tense and anxious feelings. A relaxing soundscape merges with stateless living environments until it becomes “as ignorable as it is interesting” and would “induce calm and a space to think.” Eno composed the soundscape without using sheet music but creating graphic patterns representing the systems used to make the music.
More recently, Brian Eno teamed with Asif Khan to craft an immersive sound experience within the British Pavilion at Astana World Expo. Inspired by Kazakh nomadic tents, the high-tech structure featured a 40,000 pixels wide 360° panorama and invited visitors to explore the origin of energy and the history of British innovation. Read more…
Berghain: archi-teque of a clubbing icon
Photo via IG by @monicakalpakian.
The post-industrial spaces of Berghain, a former power plant turned into a clubbing Mecca in Berlin, were recently renovated by studio karhard, who reshaped the building interiors according to techno and electronic music dancing rituals.
Photo by Michael Mayer, CC.
The club’s independent label has released RAUCH, a sonic interpretation of the work of photographer Friederike von Rauch, composed collaboratively by Berlin-based producers Felix K, Marcel Dettmann, Sa Pa, and Simon Hoffmann. Arranged and mixed by Marcel Dettmann, the recording stands in dialogue with von Rauch’s architectural images of post-World War II European monasteries, some of which were by Le Corbusier and Iannis Xenakis. The project debuts with an installation at the Paris Photo art fair.
Kraftwerk architectural 3D tour
Photo by John Begalke, CC.
KRAFTWERK globe-trotted for THE CATALOG 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 tour. The German electronic music masters who paved the way for Daft Punk and pretty much all other electronic dance music on earth performed with 3D visuals in some of Frank Gehry’s landmark projects such as the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, the Guggenheim in Bilbao and the Louis Vuitton Museum in Paris. Other significant venues were the Sydney Opera House, MoMA in New York, the Tate Modern in London, and more.
Daft Punk’s sci-fi interiors
Daft Punk are known for their Space-Age robotic look, the sharp electronic vibe, and the iconic helmets. The French duo composed the soundtrack of Tron Legacy, the new episode of the 80’s sci-fi classic. Daft Punk’s music matches the movie’s iconic aesthetics: neon outlined interiors and aerodynamic volumes, fluorescent urban spaces, and even a club where the musicians themselves appear in a cameo.
Chemical Brothers GO brutalist in Paris.
In the Chemical Brothers’ “Go” music video directed by Michel Gondry, seven women march through the stunning architecture of the Font-de-Seine district, Paris. The dancers wearing vintage sci-fi outfits perform a minimalist yet ironic choreography that dialogues with the surrounding architecture and the British band’s beat. Read more…
Röyksopp explore the impact of daily rituals on urban scale
How do cities function? In the Remind Me video, the Norwegian group Röyksopp explores the daily routines unveiling the mechanics of urban living. From morning rituals to office habits… raising awareness on the environmental impact of everyday small actions.
Alex Gopher • The Child
A baby is about to be born in New York! In Alex Gopher’s video for The Child, a taxi ride to the hospital is narrated through an animated short movie where both people and the cityscape are defined by 3D lettering. Words clouds shape buildings and avenues but also people’s personalities.
SALM and AUTECHRE’s architectural electronic music videos
Parisian project SALM – Something À La Mode released an electronic music architectural video with 3D animation showcasing a marble building taking shape. AUTECHRE’s Gantz Graf video uses distorted renderings tuning with electronic pulsations.
