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The St Matthew Passion is a complex work 

that depicts the liturgical events of Easter, with 

the libretto told by a single author. Explicit in 

the structuring of the St Matthew Passion is 

both the notion of the whole divided into two 

and its antithesis, the fusion of opposing bod-

ies. Sacred and secular music, the two funda-

mentally different textural layers of the Pas-

sion- madrigalesque poetry on the one hand, 

Holy Scripture and chorales on the other-are 

not abruptly juxtaposed . On the co ntrary: 

Picander and Bach alike set a premium on a 

seamless integration, already manifest in the 

opening chorus, in which freely conceived 

verse and the chorale blend into each other. 

Numero logically the number two sym-

bolises the figure of Jesus Christ, omega and 

alpha. An arrangement of two choirs, two or-

chestras and two parts give aural and visual 

reference to the underlying device and theme 

of the Passiori. 

The structural framework underlying the 

design is a reflection of the sequencing and 

coding of the Passion. The different layers of 

the Passion were mapped onto the site to un-

lock the encryptions and signature of the piece. 

vided the site into part one and part two . Sa-

cred lines were projected from the centre of 

the Cross and from the High Altar. Secular lines 

moved across the site parallel to the pedestrian 

streets surrounding the existing building. 

Implicit in the Passion is the number sev-

enteen. Scenes I-VII fo rm Part One; scenes 

VIII-XVII form Patt Two, following the ser-

mon. Poetic contemplations come at the end 

of the scenes in question. The structure of the 

libretto reveals the symmetrical arrangement 

of the two parts with their seventeen (7+ 10) 

contemplations. This division provides the 

main articulation in Bach 's composition, for 

the contemplative pieces in musical terms form 

the most substantial paits of his Passion set-

ting. 

The seventeenth piece is a mysterious, 

unwritten chorale, in an otherwise fully notated 

work. Seventeen is also a Fermat prime, where 

seventeen is two to the power of two to the 

power of two plus one . Plus one is the betray-

ing disciple, the Judas. The second part of the 

design was to make explicit what was implicit 

in the Passion cycle. By shifting the focal point 

from the centre of the Cross to the unwritten 

In siting the Music School and Auditorium, a chorale on the scaling line, the interior of the 

scale of two octaves based on the harmonic design was reconfigured. Lines projected out 

proportions of St Matthews Church was de- from the Cross, formed by part one of the proc-

vised and proj ected from the centre of the ess, in part two converged upon this single 

Cross, through the organ chamber. A scaling point. 

line between the first and second octave di-

Divisions of Part One and Part Two 
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Text from Jesus 

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Scenes from Pi ca nder 

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Number Seventeen as View Point 

129 



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Stained glass window in St Matthews Church 
organ chamber. 

Performance hall roof plan . 

Part Two: Plan, auditorium level (later 
version) . 

130 

Federal St 

St Matthews Church 

Hobson St 

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Part One: Plan, basement level. 
1 Part One Exordium 
2 Library 
3 School courtyard 
4 Practice rooms 
5 Teaching studios 
6 Carpark 
7 Museum 
8 Car ramp 
9 ExiVburial 

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Bird's eye view looking towards St Matthews 
Church. 

Part Two fa9ade (view from Federal St). 

Fa9ade towards St Matthews Church. 



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Part Two: Plan , auditorium leve l. 
1 Library roof 
2 Backstage and cloakroom 
3 Cafe/informal performance space 
4 Display cabinet 
5 Practice rooms 
6 Teaching studios roof 
7 Circu lation/false witnesses/balconi es 
8 Part Two exordium 
9 Bar 
10 Bathrooms 
11 Performance hall 
12 Stage 
13 Seatin g 
14 Roof terrace 

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Backdrop of stage {behind performers in 
auditorium) . 

Auditorium . 

Start of Part Two. 

Part Two: Federal S t eleva tion 
(auditorium behind). 

Part One: Entrance. 

View of roof. 

131