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Symmetry: Culture and Science
Volume 36, Number 4, pages 355-374 (2025)
https://doi.org/10.26830/symmetry_2025_4_355

MUSICAL AND ARCHITECTURAL SYMMETRIES: INTERDISCIPLINARY REFLECTIONS

Agung Dwiyanto^1*, Audy Charisma Dewi², Arnis Rochma Harani³

¹ Department of Architecture, Faculty of Engineering, Universitas Diponegoro, Jl. Prof Soedarto, S.H, Tembalang, 50275, Indonesia
Email: agungdwiyanto@lecturer.undip.ac.id
ORCID: 0009-0006-0766-3896

² Department of Architecture, Faculty of Engineering, Universitas Diponegoro, Jl. Prof Soedarto, S.H, Tembalang, 50275, Indonesia
Email: audycharismaa@gmail.com

³ Department of Architecture, Faculty of Engineering, Universitas Diponegoro, Jl. Prof Soedarto, S.H, Tembalang, 50275, Indonesia
Email: arnisrochmaharani@lecturer.undip.ac.id
ORCID: 0000-0002-3972-7632

^* Corresponding author

Abstract: This article examines the interdisciplinary nexus between music and architecture through the interpretation of the principles of symmetry in spatial, structural, and conceptual terms. Music and architecture both rely on harmony, rhythm, proportion, and transformation, which may be viewed through the lens of symmetry, along with its associates such as asymmetry and dissymmetry. Using a qualitative narrative analysis, this study explores how architectural designs interpret musical compositions and vice versa, with a focus on geometric structures, temporal rhythms, and spatial experiences. The paper identifies three key areas in which music and architecture are related: interpretation, compositional rules, and geometry. Several case studies illustrate how symmetry functions as a mediating principle in both visual and acoustic compositions, including Frank Gehry's Experience Music Project and Xenakis and Le Corbusier's Philips Pavilion. Additionally, projects such as Symphonic House and Music Box Village illustrate how spatial and auditory symmetries contribute to immersive experiences. This study contributes to the emerging discourse of symmetrology in design thinking by identifying structural invariants under compositional transformations. Finally, this research reveals how musical and architectural creativity share a foundation in the use of symmetry to create new possibilities for interdisciplinarity.

Keywords: geometry, architecture and music, interpretation; rules; symmetry in spatial

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