Viewing Tower, Kobe
Date of Sketch: July 11, 2010
Thunderstorms on the Tanglewood grounds during the afternoon concert sparked a fantasy of this viewing tower far away.
Three Musicians
Date of Sketch: August 20, 2004
At a prelude concert before the evening program the players had the kind of presence I ordinarily associate only with buildings. Thus each musician is characterized by their imagined architectural form. From top to bottom: Sheila Fiekowsky Violin; Garrick Ohlsson Piano; Martha Babcock Cello.
Mozartæum, Salzberg
Date of Sketch: January 27, 2001
A library/chamber hall for study and performance of Mozart's musical manuscripts 245 years after his birth.
Hero’s Tower (Ein Heldenleben)
Date Of Sketch: October 29, 2011
Neither the music nor the sketch of a building represent any definitive Hero - only the idea of grace through strength won after many losses.
Chamber Hall, Moscow
Date of Sketch: November 21, 2015
Sited at the edge of a clearing in an urban park, this concept for a Chamber Hall reflects Shostakovich's artistic journey towards Soviet political redemption.
Red Rocks Resort
Date of Sketch: August 20, 2004
Concept Sketch
A Building For Performance
Date of Sketch: August 22, 1998
Concept sketch inspired by Bartok's Dance Suite.
Bach Hall, Leipzig
Date of Sketch: August 21, 2010
In 1980 I met Sheila Fiekowsky, a violinist, and was drawn into her world of music - that of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. In 1983, I began making sketches in Symphony programs before the orchestra began to play. Later, the sketches became part of my listening.
Each week I have looked forward to listening and drawing what I hear (and see in my mind’s eye.) I think the best sketches are those which are drawn from the music alone. Sometimes the music is in the background when I’m thinking about an actual design problem, but that rarely produces the best sketch.
A 37 Story Building
Date of Sketch: January 31, 1998
Music and architecture seem to have an inverse relationship. They are often described in each other's terms. One is weightless; the other is material. Each has qualities of the other. Music has size, color, form. Architecture is rhythmic, poetic, lyrical.
Architect Erich Mendelsohn sketched buildings to music, referring to his sketches as "musical compositions".
Exhibition Bridge / Assembly Bridge
Date of Sketch: April 5, 2013
Sketch for an entry pavilion for a construction materials manufacturer, linking two research & development buildings on its corporate campus.