Gordon Cheng
Class of 2026San Carlos, California
About
I'm working on a research paper that tries to explain the symmetries of classical music using group theory. I hope to submit this paper in a peer-reviewed journal.Projects
- "How can group theory be used to explain symmetries in classical music?" with mentor Wyatt (July 13, 2025)
Project Portfolio
How can group theory be used to explain symmetries in classical music?
Started Feb. 14, 2025
Abstract or project description
This project will explore what symmetries exist in classical music and how we can express them using group theory, specifically group actions. Using mathematical objects and techniques from post-tonal music theory, we can describe aspects of tonal music theory. A few examples of objects from post-tonal music theory are transformation groups, pitch classes, and pitch set classes. This paper will define group actions which are relevant to symmetries in classical music, and analyze these actions using orbits, stabilizers, actions by subgroups, etc. The paper will also provide examples from classical pieces. Instead of a twelve tone model that is used in post-tonal theory, we will attempt to define and use a diatonic model for classical music, with a corresponding diatonic symmetry group.