In order to provide some context, as well as include those of you at home in this experience, we'll dive into the historical/sensorial correlations between scent and sound, as well as focus on the compositions created.
Invisible Forces
Scent and aroma are often described using similar language. Both are composed of notes that can be described as high or low, and as anyone who’s wandered out of the department store wearing one too many complimentary perfume spritzes can attest, perfume is certainly as capable as music at creating discordance.
Think of how a fragrance can be described as loud or bold, while others are ‘faint as a whisper’. Scent can be light and airy, or grave and somber. Like music, scent has a profound effect on our moods and ability to recall memories. Scent and sound, though intangible, add dimension to our sight-dominated world and carry a steady stream of information as they flow forth. One a molecule, the other a wave - both able to penetrate us to our core and transport the psyche through sensorial storytelling.
Piesse believed that all senses fell under a common law of harmony, and suggested that an odiferous bouquet could have the same pleasant effect on the mind as a melody. His gamut of odours (pictured below), or odophone, matched 24 musical notes to a range of scents by measure of pitch, timbre, and shape, and recommended that the art of perfumery be approached similarly to how one would compose a piece of music.
It has been theorized that humans are sensitive to certain combinations of sounds and smells which might appear disharmonious or unfamiliar, thus alerting them to possible danger, and that cross-modal perception plays an important role in evolution and survival.
Top Notes: light, bright, and attention-grabbing aromas that can be smelled immediately upon application, like citrus oils or ozonic/‘airy’ notes. Top notes are volatile compounds and fade the fastest. Familiar examples include bergamot, grapefruit, black pepper, and fir needle.
Middle Notes: also known as the heart, middle notes act as a bridge between the lighter top and heavier base notes. They provide depth, substance, and body to a fragrance. Familiar examples include rose absolute, lavender absolute, jasmine, and clove.
Base Notes: form the foundation of the perfume; tenacious and fixative odours that, while not as ‘loud’ as higher notes, outlast them all. Base notes can be smelled in the drydown for hours, sometimes days. Familiar examples include oakmoss, sandalwood, patchouli, vetiver, and labdanum.
Accord: occasionally called ‘chord’, an accord is the harmonious combination of two or more fragrant materials to compose a singular ‘note’ that is more than the sum of its parts. Accords often give fragrances their ‘signature’, helping classify them. Familiar examples include a classic fougère accord (bergamot+lavender+oakmoss) or amber accord (benzoin+labdanum+vanilla).
Perfumer's Organ: a perfumer’s workstation, typically organized in tiers to display the wide array of ‘notes’ at their disposal while composing a fragrance.
