Hearing a museum

Is there a finer building anywhere for seeing great paintings than Fort Worth’s stunning Kimbell Museum, designed by Louis Kahn?

Google http://www.GreatBuildings.com/buildings/Kimbell_Museum.html and you’ll see what I mean.

Tonight we “saw” the Kimbell in a different light, because a trio of string players from the Fort Worth Symphony was playing classical music in the central hall. The sound was impressive – strong, clear, emotionally involving, and most of all, natural. That’s the key, natural. No amplification, no carpet, no absorbent surfaces. I stepped off 90 feet in the central hall. The sound was still strong, clear, emotionally involving, and natural.

To be clear, it is not a matter of reverberation, because there is almost no reverberation in the Kimbell. Rather, it is a matter of non-absorption. The interior of the museum is not painted black, because that would absorb light. Neither is the interior of the museum carpeted, because that would absorb sound.

There is a lesson here (hear?) for churches.