총 36페이지

08 Digest&Focus
Finding Connections:
The Mathematical
Origins of Music
By JangHo-Jun
intothemathematicaloriginsofmuchof
through numeric formulation. His
theworld’sartisticheritage,highlighting
philosophical worship of numbers, as
Associate Editor of Theory & Critique
the relationship between seemingly
described by later Greek thinkers such
S
Section
unrelatedfields.
as Aristotle, encompassed such abstract
peakers at the Korea Science
notions as harmony in nature and in
Festival 2009, South Korea’s
the universe to the relationship between
Digest
largest science fair, stressed
While most think music and science
spaceandtime,aswellastothephysical
the need for greater integration of
belong to completely different academic
world,astronomy,andmusic.
academic fields. The event was held
fields, both trace their origins to the
According to legend, Pythagoras
fromAug.4-9attheKoreaInternational
world of mathematics. For millennia,
stopped while passing a group of
Exhibition Center in Ilsan, Gyeonggi
students around the world have been
blacksmiths at work after being struck
Province, under the auspices of the
taught to view math, science, and the
by the beauty and evident harmony of
Korea Foundation for the Advancement
arts as separate and unrelated fields, a
the sounds emanating from their anvils.
of Science & Creativity and the Korea
practice that continues into the present
He concluded that whatever scientific
Institute of S&T Evaluation and
day.Whileresearchishelpingtouncover
law was at work here must have a
Planning. Among the lecturers was
theserelationships,boundariespersist.
mathematical explanation that could be
Kim Choon-mee, a professor at Korea
Going back to ancient times, scholars
applied to music. Returning once again
National University of Arts, whose
attempted to decipher the workings of
to the blacksmiths’ shop, he discovered
lecture “Music is Mathematics” delved
the universe and the world around them
that the tones produced by the anvils
through rigorous observation, hoping
were relative to the length of the anvils.
to ascertain the fundamental principles
Extrapolating from his theory that
behind the phenomenal world. Their
the distance between planets could be
efforts laid the foundations of logic and
arranged as simple ratios, he concluded
mathematical thought to the present
that the acoustic relationship between
day, simultaneously creating the basic
tones could similarly be described
structuresforthevisualartsandmusic.
throughnumbers.
Taketheharmonicscale,probablythe
The human pulse provided another
most vivid example of the relationship
sourceofmusicalinspiration,thesteady
between math and music. The 4th
rhythm of the human body finding
Century Greek philosopher Pythagoras
echoes in the earliest pieces of musical
maintainedthatnumeralscoulddescribe
work. German composer Ludwig Van
Professor Kim Choon-mee lectures on the
the structure of sound. “All nature is
Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 5 in C
relationship between art and science at
ruled by number,” he said, arguing that
minor,”forexample,laidgreatstresson
the Korea International Exhibition Center
abstract concepts could be explained
setting the distance between notes. The
onAug.9.
www.theargus.org

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