MONDAY BYTES — August 18, 2014
With some airport layover time a week ago, I had a walk in the Toronto Music Garden. Created in 1999, the Garden is a three-acre public park on Toronto’s Harbourfront, a slice of beauty sandwiched between the busy city commercial cityscape and the boat slips near the airport.
Created in 1999, the music garden is the brainchild of cellist Yo-Yo Ma and landscape artist Julie Moir Messervey.
Inspired by the first Bach cello suite, there are curving paths that move visitors through six garden “movements” that flow from the different emotions and forms evoked.
The project sprang from Ma’s film collaboration series in which each of the six suites is a partnership with an artist from a different discipline.
After production of the film, the city of Boston was approached to create an actual garden based on the first suite: “the Music Garden.” When the Boston site fell through, Toronto Parks and Recreation enthusiastically embraced the project and brought it to fruition. The Garden also hosts a diverse summer music series of free concerts.
One thing I love about this is the connecting of music and architecture to create of positive community space, and that as a garden, the collaboration is live and growing. It’s architecture not as frozen music, but as a liquid, dynamic experience.
Take a short video tour (7:35) of the garden with the designer narrating.
Question for the week: In thinking about the connection between music and architecture, what projects come to mind that you’d like to explore?
As always, I welcome hearing your thoughts and feedback!
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