Yves Klein's Monotone-Silence Symphony in the Key of D Major

About the Work I chose Yves Klein's symphony as a subject matter because it is in the key of D which corresponds remarkably close to *International Klein Blue (IKB) in the color chart I use in this series.  

The symphony consists of 20 minutes of an orchestra playing the D note followed by 20 minutes of silence. The record label design accurately conveys the entire Monotone- Silence Symphony.  The top half is blue representing 20 minutes playing the D note.  The bottom half is black representing 20 minutes of silence.  Side Note: The second part of the symphony is not totally silent (that would be boring).  It consists of ambient sounds made by the orchestra and audience and it's super compelling.    

Yves Klein's Monotone Symphony in D Major, 2024, **7 x 7 inch etched 45 blank

The color chart above contains interval numbers and note names/ letters that correspond to the colors of the 7 note diatonic scale 1-2-3-4-5-6-7. Five more colors are added in between to represent the sharps and flats of the 12 note chromatic scale.

*International Klein Blue (IKB) is a deep blue hue first mixed by the French artist Yves Klein.   My color chart is based on a mathematical equation that translates sound waves/ Hz to light waves/ colors. At first I thought IKB might be closer to E on my color chart, but when I increased the exposure of IKB the resulting color was remarkably close to D, which inspired this work.

** A note about the smaller hole on this 45 LP: I chose to use a 45 blank with a smaller central hole than the standard 1.5 inch hole found on most 45s because I like the way it looks and the label covers more space. This design was primarily used in the UK market, allowing the record to be played directly on a turntable without needing a separate adapter, unlike the larger-holed 45s prevalent in the US.  

Below are three videos of the Symphony:
https://youtu.be/JfiBFqcHaQE?si=adl4-kqG1oDm5pe2

https://youtu.be/oeyqORIQ4BA?si=OgWXdgVF52nh0j_H

https://youtu.be/LkHoWUwxEFM?si=DHR7uLwbrAboJ5wP

Art that Bridges the Universal Languages of Music, Math, and Color

In the time of the Ancient Greeks, music was not seen as an art but rather as a quantitative science that was used as a mathematical and philosophical description of how the universe was perceived to be constructed.