Kristina Dutton

“The phenomenon of universalization, while being an advancement of man- kind, at the same time constitutes a sort of subtle destruction…We have the feeling that this single world civilization at the same time exerts a sort of attrition or wearing away at the expense of the cultural resources... Everywhere throughout the world, one finds the same bad movie, the same slot machines, the same plastic or aluminum atrocities, the same twisting of language by propaganda, etc...

Thus we come to the crucial problem confronting nations just rising from underdevelopment.

In order to get on to the road toward modernization, is it necessary to jettison the old cultural past which has been the raison d'être of a nation? . . . Whence the paradox: on the one hand,it has to root itself in the soil of its past, forge a national spirit, and unfurl this spiritual and cultural revindication before the colonialist's personality. But in order to take part in modern civilization, it is necessary at the same time to take part in scientific, technical, and political rationality, something which very often requires the pure and simple abandon of a whole cultural past. It is a fact: every culture cannot sustain and absorb the shuck of modern civilization. There is the paradox: how to become modern and to return to sources; how to revive an old, dormant civilization and take part in universal civilization.”

•Paul Ricoeur, History and Truth, 1955

PROJECT - A Musical Exploration of Critical Regionalism

Critical Regionalism in Architecture

Bridging global modernity with local identity, Critical Regionalism is a school of thought that uses architectural design to counter placeless homogeneity by integrating building designs with geographical and cultural context. It's a dialogue between the universal and the particular, where buildings speak the language of modern architecture while echoing the voice of their locality.

The Project: Piano Preludes Inspired by Architecture

Recording winter 2024 - spring 2025, this series of piano preludes is based on various styles of architecture. The pieces will be performed by pianist Motoko Honda.

Music can translate space into time, structure into feeling. These preludes explore how both architecture and music can speak simultaneously of place and beyond place.

The piano serves as a unifying element, the common voice of these preludes.

When I began writing these, I was drawn to the intersection of design and cultural histories embedded in architecture, particularly the philosophy of Critical Regionalism. It was my cousin, an architect, who later shared with me Goethe's observation that 'Music is liquid architecture, architecture frozen music' - a connection that now seems inevitable.