The following is selected work from my design thesis project. This follows on from City of Sound, the initial research stage which provides the context and brief of the design solution in the latter portion of the project, The Musical Microcosm.

Glasgow’s music scene is under siege; threats to grassroots, venue closures, crumbling support systems, and homogenisation threatening the industry’s musical diversity. However, from adversity comes opportunity; from the ruins of the industry a new musical reality for Glasgow grows. This thesis proposes architecture that redefines how music is created, performed, and experienced.

Set within the walls of the O2 ABC, a site symbolic of the industry’s decline due to its unnecessary destruction, the project constructs a self-sustaining musical microcosm that flips the industry’s narrative: musicians and industrians are truly accommodated, and every facet of music-making is made visible. Inspired by themes from Rancière’s The Emancipated Spectator, the design challenges passive audiences by drawing the public into the creative process, fostering a deeper understanding of the art form. These design elements also help to make music more socially accessible to those outwith the industry or community.

By making use of experimental methods throughout the design process, the proposal delivers a tectonic dimension by uniting conventional architectural methods with those associated with music and composition. This ensures that the final solution encompasses music fully, from the inside out. Similarly in principle, a programme formed from industry research takes the form of a compositional construct: the circle of fifths. This cyclical system of activity and objectives aims to support those in the industry at all stages. By embedding these businesses, workshops, studios, practise rooms, performance rooms and even backstage spaces within the High Street’s fabric, this project presents a radically different, positivist vision for what could have been; for the ABC and for Glasgow.

To explore the compositional element of the thesis, see Composing the Building.