The spoken word is a gray area in American music.
It exists in an ill-defined region between the cultural cache of rap and the Pulitzer prestige of written poetry. Part of the reason for this could be because there's been no real attempt at a systemized MEASUREMENT of the spoken word in the English language.*
13 Golden Rectangles places the spoken word into a measured context, beginning with a baseline of Syllables Per Minute and expanding into related mathematical and geometric ideas, transforming everyday language into an aesthetic that's distinct from the bar-based approach of rap and the two dimensions of the written word.
One vocal line (automated) is recited at 144 syllables per minute. Another vocal line (automated) is recited at 233 syllables per minute (the average American speaking tempo). Another vocal line (human) is recited at approximately 377 syllables per minute (speech accelerated by 1.618). All three referencing the same poem. The poem containing between 34 and 55 syllables per line. The three sides equating to a (slightly asymmetric) golden rectangle in time.
