Architecture Defrosted
Tour Details
- Meeting point: Central London, Outside the Institute of Contemporary Arts on The Mall.
- Tour length: 1hr 45 minutes
- Tour distance: 4.2 km
- Tour stops: Carlton House Terrace, the Athenæum Club, New Zealand House, Burlington House, Norway House.
- Accessibility: Short sections of steps and a cobbled courtyard. Toilets avaliable at the begining, middle and end of the tour.
- Tour price: £20pp
- Maximum Group size: 12 (we like to keep it small to allow for maximum interactivity!)
Goethe famously once said that “architecture is frozen music”. However, architecture’s deep and fascinating musical connection is oft overlooked.
This tour — led by interdisciplinary researcher and Golden Key Academy-trained guide, Alexandra Woodford — aims to tease out these connections through a combination of knowledge-sharing and simple guided exercises.
From antiquity to the modern day in under two whistlestop hours, this nevertheless leisurely stroll will take in structures including the Athenæum, Royal Academy of Art and New Zealand House. Within this time, participants will explore topics including the lingering influence of classical thought on building composition, the role of the architect as the conductor of urban ‘performance’, and music’s positioning as architecture’s future muse.
This step-by-step tour is orchestrated to provide a gentle introduction to musical notions. So please don’t worry if you don’t know a crochet from a quaver, or John Cage from Handel. The tour is designed to be conceptually accessible to all. So please come, engage and get ready to see the built environment from an entirely more melodious perspective!