It may not be as flashy as the Walt Disney Concert Hall Frank Gehry designed in Los Angeles, but the recently opened Pierre Boulez Saal concert hall in Berlin still brings a unique aesthetic and experience to the 682 listeners that can attend a concert there.
The design of the Pierre Boulez Saal eliminates the stage found in most concert halls, separating the musicians from the audience, and instead, employs the use of an oval to create one connected community. The oval allows for a much more intimate experience. It also allows the music to reverberate for slightly longer, says Daniel Barenboim in a New York Times interview, which leads to a more enjoyable experience for the listeners.
The original idea for the oval space came from an initial sketch Gehry showed to Barenboim. Barenboim loved the idea for a non-traditional concert hall and encouraged Gehry to pursue this design, according to the Pierre Boulez Saal’s official website.
Yasuhisa Toyota, a globally acclaimed acoustician, worked with Gehry to create the acoustics of the hall. Gehry and Toyota both donated their work as a gift in appreciation of what the project represented.
The Pierre Boulez Saal resides in the Barenboim-Said Akademie building, nestled into the cultural and historical center of Berlin. In addition to the revamped Pierre Boulez Saal, the building renovation adds 21 rehearsal rooms, an auditorium, a library, offices, and other ancillary space to fill the 6,500 sm.
On Saturday, March 4, the concert hall officially opened its doors for the first time to host four-hour concert by the Boulez Ensemble.
Related Stories
| Sep 22, 2014
4 keys to effective post-occupancy evaluations
Perkins+Will's Janice Barnes covers the four steps that designers should take to create POEs that provide design direction and measure design effectiveness.
| Sep 22, 2014
Sound selections: 12 great choices for ceilings and acoustical walls
From metal mesh panels to concealed-suspension ceilings, here's our roundup of the latest acoustical ceiling and wall products.
| Sep 9, 2014
Using Facebook to transform workplace design
As part of our ongoing studies of how building design influences human behavior in today’s social media-driven world, HOK’s workplace strategists had an idea: Leverage the power of social media to collect data about how people feel about their workplaces and the type of spaces they need to succeed.
| Sep 3, 2014
New designation launched to streamline LEED review process
The LEED Proven Provider designation is designed to minimize the need for additional work during the project review process.
| Sep 2, 2014
Ranked: Top green building sector AEC firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
AECOM, Gensler, and Turner top BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest green design and construction firms.
| Aug 25, 2014
Ranked: Top cultural facility sector AEC firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Arup, Gensler, and Turner head BD+C's rankings of design and construction firms with the most revenue from cultural facility projects, as reported in the 2014 Giants 300 Report.
| Jul 28, 2014
Reconstruction market benefits from improving economy, new technology [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Following years of fairly lackluster demand for commercial property remodeling, reconstruction revenue is improving, according to the 2014 Giants 300 report.
| Jul 28, 2014
Reconstruction Sector Construction Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Structure Tone, Turner, and Gilbane top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction contractor and construction management firms in the U.S.
| Jul 28, 2014
Reconstruction Sector Engineering Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Jacobs, URS, and Wiss, Janney, Elstner top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction engineering and engineering/architecture firms in the U.S.
| Jul 28, 2014
Reconstruction Sector Architecture Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Stantec, HDR, and HOK top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction architecture and architecture/engineering firms in the U.S.