Proceedings of The National Conference

On Undergraduate Research (NCUR) 2012

Weber State University, Ogden Utah
March 29 31, 2012

A Link to the Past: An Examination of J.S. Bach and Gyrgy Kurtgs

compositions using the golden ratio and Fibonacci Sequence
Jeff Laser
Music Department
Capital University
1 College and Main
Columbus, Ohio 43209
Faculty Advisor: Dr Dina Lentsner
Abstract
Music, by nature, contains many connections with mathematics. Many scientists, musicians and thinkers beginning
with Pythagoras in 6th century BC have explored these connections. In this presentation, using mathematical
correlations, parallels are drawn between composers as disparate as Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) and
contemporary Hungarian composer Gyrgy Kurtg (b. 1926). Through examination of the selected pieces from
Bachs Well Tempered Clavier and Kurtgs Jatekok, the Fibonacci Series and the Golden Ratio may both be
applied in various ways. The Golden Ratio appears in two of Bachs preludes from Well Tempered Clavier, No. 1 in
C major and No. 3 in C Sharp major, and serves to dictate the form of the pieces on a macro-level. Specifically, in
the latter prelude, Bach creates a textural and rhythmic climax on the measure corresponding to the Golden Ratio.
This is achieved through harmonic tension with a dominant chord as well as a break in the constant sixteenth note
motion of the composition. By comparison, Kurtgs laconic musical language requires a more specific micro-level
examination. The Fibonacci Series may be applied to numerous miniatures in Jatekok through intervallic content,
rhythm, and structure. For example, in many of the microludes examined, Kurtg chooses the intervals of minor
second, major second, minor third, and perfect fourth. These intervals consist of one, two, three, and five half steps all Fibonacci numbers. As with Bachs music, in Kurtgs Jatekok, the Golden Ratio is also present and is
correspondent with the organization of notes and apex of the compositions. This occurs in Hommage a Kadosa
through the composers choice of notes: of nine total notes in the piece, the one that occurs most often is C natural.
The significance of this note is strengthened by not only its placement in the beginning and the end of the
composition, but also its occurrence at the point of Golden Ratio. Utilizing these mathematical connections in music
leads to a deeper understanding of the structure and semantics of a composition and also serves as a bridge between
otherwise dissimilar composers.

Keywords: Music, Golden Ratio, Fibonacci Sequence

1. Body of Paper
Connections between the past and present, between art and science, between tangible and intangible, can be found in
the most unlikely ways. Who would think that a link could be drawn from modern Hungarian composer Gyrgy
Kurtg and Baroque era master Johann Sebastian Bach by means of arithmetic and an age-old ratio? In this paper I
will demonstrate the ways Bach and Kurtg utilize the golden ratio and Fibonacci sequence and how these concepts
affect their compositions.
To grasp the link between Kurtg and Bachs music, one must first understand the definition and significance of
both the golden ratio and Fibonacci numbers. As long ago as 300 BC, mathematicians, artists, architects, musicians,
and many others have been interested in the golden ratio. This ratio, also known as the golden section or golden
mean, is defined as the following equation:

(1)

In sentence form, this can be said as A plus B is to A as A is to B. This means that the total length of a plus b is to
the longer segment (A) as A is to the shorter segment (B). For a simple way to visualize this see below:

(2)
The symbol on the right of the equation of Figure 1 is the lowercase Greek letter Phi
which is often used to
represent the golden ratio. There is only one positive solution to this equation, which is shown below:

(3)

This answer is the best approximation of a real number to define the golden ratio. Often, for the sake of simplicity,
this number is rounded to 1.618. When forming the Golden Ratio into a quadratic equation we also find an
interesting characteristic of the Golden Ratios conjugate. Observe the relationships of these equations:

(4)

Alternatively, can be expressed as

(5)

This illustrates the unique property of the golden ratio among positive numbers, that

(6)

or its inverse:

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(7)

This means that .61803 is to 1 as 1 is to 1.61803. One can use this inverse of .618 to find the golden mean in a
piece of music, either by measure or note. To do this one would simply multiply .618 by the number of measures or
notes in the piece, and the resulting answer would be the golden mean. For example for a 32 measure piece the
equation would be .618 x 32 which equals 19.776, and you would most likely choose to round this to measure 20.
The Fibonacci series was discovered by Leonardo of Pisa sometime around the turn of the 12th century. His
concept is a bit easier to understand than the golden ratio. The numbers in the series are calculated by adding the two
numbers that precede it. The first few numbers of the sequence are as such:
0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, etc.
As the numbers in the Fibonacci series grow larger, the relationship between two adjacent numbers gets closer and
closer to the golden ratio. For example, if we take the series above and extend it to the 19th and 20th numbers in the
sequence, we get 9349 and 15127. If we divide the 20th number by the 19th we get 1.618034, which exactly matches
the numbers of the golden ratio up to the 6th decimal.
These two concepts have been such an enduring part of art, music, architecture, and math for many reasons. For
instance, the golden ratio is particularly useful in scaling and proportion in both painting and architecture. It can be
used to construct shapes that are aesthetically pleasing and proportional. Artist Leonardo da Vinci was believed to
have used the golden section in many of his paintings, especially to aid him in scaling the human body (Obara). The
Fibonacci sequence also has a recurrence relation, i.e. the numbers in the series are obtained directly from the ones
that precede it, giving it a sense of self-relation.
The golden ratio also appears frequently in nature, which perhaps is what gives it significance more than anything
else. German psychologist Adolf Zeising found the golden ratio expressed in the arrangement of branches along the
steams of plants and also the veins in leaves. He even found the ratio in the skeletons and circulatory systems (veins)
of animals and the geometry of crystals. Zeising talks of the golden ratio in the preface of Neue Lehre van den
Proportionen des meschlischen Krpers:
the ground-principle of all formative striving for beauty and completeness in the realms of both
nature and art, and which permeates, as a paramount spiritual ideal, all structures, forms and
proportions, whether cosmic or individual, organic or inorganic, acoustic or optical; which finds its
fullest realization, however, in the human form.
In music there are a multitude of connections between these concepts and just about anything. For example, there
are thirteen notes in a one-octave chromatic scale (counting the note repeating at the octave). There are eight notes
in a diatonic scale, and the most important note (other than tonic) is the dominant, which is the fifth note of scale
and the eighth note chromatically. Note that all of these numbers are part of the Fibonacci sequence. Stradivarius
violins, some of the most sought after instruments of the world, are said to be constructed to the proportions of the
golden ratio (Meisner). In fact, the golden ratio can be utilized extensively with acoustics when designing
instruments or a space for music such as a recording studio or concert hall. Pearl drum company even cites the
golden ratio when placing the air vents on their Masters Premium models for improved bass response.
With this understanding we can now apply these concepts to the music of Kurtg and Bach. In Bachs music, we
can compare the golden ratio and Fibonacci series with texture changes and harmonic tension. In Prelude No. 3 in C
Sharp Major from Well Tempered Clavier, Bach utilizes constant sixteenth notes as a rhythmic basis for the piece
until reaching the measure corresponding to the golden ratio. Recall earlier the equation to find the golden ratio, the
golden ratio inverse multiplied by the number of measures or notes. For this piece we would get measure 64 (104 x
.618= 64.272). Here Bach writes a dominant chord and breaks up the sixteenth note motion with rests. As Jennifer
Cruz writes ,the resulting displacement becomes not only a textural, but a rhythmic climax (Cruz, 41),
(See Figure 1 below).

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Figure 1
In Prelude No. 1 in C Major, Bach demonstrates the effectiveness of the golden ratio structure through usage of
harmonic tension. The golden ratio of the prelude is at measure 21 of the 35-measure piece (35 x .618 = 21.63).
When this section occurs, Bach writes a F sharp diminished chord - a chord far removed from tonic, which then
leads to a dominant pedal point for eight measures. This is the furthest the piece strays from tonic and thus the point
of highest tension in the piece, an effective tool when paired with the golden ratio (see Figure 2 below).

Figure 2
The Fibonacci series and golden section can be applied to intervallic content, rhythms, and structure in Kurtg s
Hommage a Kadosa from Jatekok, The first microlude contains a total of nine notes. Looking at the intervallic
relationship from one note to the next in the piece reveals the usage of minor seconds, major seconds, and minor
thirds, which correspond to the first three numbers of the Fibonacci series (1, 2, and 3). Of the nine notes in the

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piece, the note that occurs the most in the piece is C natural, and it is important to note when it occurs. It is the first
and last note of the piece as well as the fifth note, the note that corresponds to the golden ratio (9 x .618= 5.562)
(see. Figure 3 below).

Figure 3
The second microlude contains the intervals of minor second, major second, minor third, and perfect fourth (1, 2, 3
and 5 in the Fibonacci series) with the exception of one major third. This major third occurs as an isolated event in
the piece, however. There are thirteen notes in the piece, which are grouped into five, two and six, with the isolated
two grouping being the only major third.

Figure 4
The fourth microlude from 12 uj Mikroludium in Jatekok features interesting golden section and Fibonacci
connections as well. There are twenty-one notes and rhythms (discounting double, triple, and quadruple stops)
which means the 12th note is the note/rhythm corresponding to the golden ratio (21 x .618= 12.978). This note is
highest note of the piece. Rhythmically, there are twenty-one rhythms (a Fibonacci number) and all of these are
grouped in ones, twos, and threes.

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Figure 5
Through these finite examples we see the creative ways these composers utilized the golden ratio and Fibonacci
sequence. Whether or not these occurrences were intentional or by chance cant be proven for certain (especially
when considering Bachs music), however it nonetheless links the minds and compositions of two masterful
composers and their deft touch regarding structure, logic, and proportion.

2. Bibliography
1. Argosh, Richard S. Nine Short Pieces: Brevity in the Music of Beethoven, Webern, and Kurtag. 1991. Print.
2. Cruz, Jennifer. The Aesthetic Relevance of the Golden Section in the Well Tempered Clavier by J.S. Bach: The
Relationship Between Form, Temporal Flow and Proportional Balance. Diss. University of Cincinnati, 2007. Print.
3. McLay, Margaret. "Gyorgy Kurtag's Microludes." Print. Rpt. in Cambridge UP. Print.
4. Meisner, Gary. "Music." Phi: 1.618. The Best Source to the Golden Section, Golden Mean, Divine Proportion,
Fibonacci Series and Phi, 1.618. Explore Its Application to Art, Design, Life, Beauty, Mathematics, Geometry, Stock
Markets, Theology, Cosmology and More. Web. 11 Nov. 2010. <http://goldennumber.net/music.htm>.
5. Vadja, S. Fibonacci & Lucas Numbers, and the Golden Section. Print.
6. Zeising, Adolf. Neue Lehre Van Den Proportionen Des Meschlischen Krpers. Print.

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