Sounding Reconstruction at St Paul's Cathedral, 1660–1714

Abstract

“Sounding Reconstruction at St Paul’s Cathedral, 1660–1714” is a study of the sonic and musical history of St Paul’s Cathedral in London. It examines how musical and sonic signification played a role in the rebuilding after the Great Fire of 1666, led by architect Christopher Wren (1632–1723). During reconstruction the monarchy, the Church of England, and Parliament were able to implicate sounds produced both within and outside London’s St Paul’s into a narrative of institutional power. Relationships between the cathedral, the monarchy, the Anglican Church, and the people of London were redrawn, reinterpreted, and affected by sonic parameters; through noise pollution, acoustical construction, and sung liturgy, sounds at St Paul’s came to signify progress, excellence, and divine authority for London’s institutions, to the detriment of the Capital’s own citizens. I argue that sound is analogous to power within the cathedral, and that those sounds represent a microcosm of the social networks, overlapping authorities, and architectural spaces in Restoration London. This project thus contributes to a paradigmatic shift in understanding the rich complexities of sound and its broad impact on culture in the early modern period.This study thus contributes to a paradigmatic shift in understanding the rich complexities of sound and its broad impact on culture in the early modern period. Interpreting St Paul’s as a monument, a symbol, and a metaphor is essential to clarifying its complex relationship with soundscapes, the nation’s capital, and its authoritative, political institutions.