Zaha Hadid Architects have been selected by the jury of the international design competition to build the new Sverdlovsk Philharmonic Concert Hall in Yekaterinburg, Russia. Yekaterinburg has built a rich musical tradition and established its reputation as a cultural and artistic centre.
The city’s acclaimed Ural Philharmonic Orchestra has performed in more than 20 countries and collaborates with renowned artists worldwide. Echoing the physical aspects of sound waves, the design of the new Philharmonic Concert Hall is based on the properties of musical sound resonance creating wave vibrations in a continuous smooth surface.
The design re-interprets these physical acoustic properties to define spaces for the auditoria that are suspended within the canopy, appearing to float above the new civic plaza that is both the lobby of the Philharmonic Concert Hall and an enclosed urban square.
Providing a 1,600-seat Concert Hall and a 400-seat Chamber Music Hall of the highest acoustic standards, these new auditoria are nestled within the surface deformations of the suspended canopy; liberating the lobbies from obstructions to open this space as a vibrant new gathering place for the local community.
This new 21st century addition will inhabit the void between the existing buildings and Weiner Gardens; not competing with these heritage buildings, but complementing the ensemble that will include the preservation and renovation of the current concert hall as an integral element of the new world-class facility that will be one of the focal points of the city’s cultural life.
Similarly, the new building does not impose upon the adjacent Weiner Gardens but seamlessly merges with the natural landscape; opening its transparent glass facade to offer views of the renovated gardens that includes an amphitheatre for outdoor performances throughout the summer.
The lobby serves not only as an introduction to the world of symphony music, but also as a welcoming public plaza for all members of its local community. The existing Sverdlovsk Philharmonic Hall is housed within the city’s old Civic Assembly Building that was originally built as a club for all citizens to gather.
The new design revives and enhances this commendable civic legacy; its spaces designed to function as a centre of Yekaterinburg’s civic, social and cultural life. The Philharmonic Concert Hall’s procession of interconnected public spaces continues through the building to its rooftop terrace overlooking the city’s Church of All Saints.
Enhancing its connections with the surrounding urban fabric of the city, large glazed facades blur the boundary between interior and exterior; inviting visitors to experience the spaces within that celebrate public gathering, civic forum and creative endeavour.
Christos Passas, Project Director at Zaha Hadid Architects, said: “Russia has been a formative influence on Zaha Hadid Architects’ creative work. From very early in her career, Zaha was attracted to the Russian avant-garde who conceived civic spaces as urban condensers that catalyse a public realm of activity to enrich creativity and community; allowing space itself to enhance our understanding and well-being. These principles are embedded within the design of the new Sverdlovsk Philharmonic Concert Hall.” Source by Zaha Hadid Architects.
- Location: Yekaterinburg, Russia
- Architect: Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA)
- ZHA Principal: Patrik Schumacher
- ZHA Design Director: Christos Passas
- ZHA Project Architect: Alessio Costantino
- ZHA Design Lead: Ben Kikkawa, Melhem Sfeir, Zsuzsanna Barat, Afsoon Es Haghi
- ZHA Project Team: Duo Chen, Christina Christodoulidou, Anna Uborevich-Borovskaya, Ekaterina Smirnova, Aleksandar Bursac, Alicia Hidalgo Lopez, Maria-Eleni Bali, Eckart Schwerdtfeger, Maria Avrami, Valeria Perco, Sattor Jabbor
- ZHA Senior Interior Designer: Sonia Renehan
- ZHA Cultural Researcher: Vera Kichanova
- ZHA Administrator: Nastasija Hahonina
- ZHA Project Consultant: Liudmila Harrison-Jones
- ZHA Graphic Design: Silviya Barzakova
- ZHA Videography: Henry Virgin
- Local Architect: SPEECH (Moscow); Sergey Tchoban, Marina Kuznetskaya, Daria Demidova
- Structural Engineering: AKT II (London); Daniel Bosia
- MEP Engineering: Atelier 10 (London); Meredith Davey, Ivan Jovanovich, Piers Watts-jones, Younha Rhee
- Façade Engineering: OPTIMISE (London); Scott Cahill, Adam Willetts, Tim Macfarlane (Glass Light and Special Structure)
- Landscape Design: ARTEZA (Moscow); Irina Chebanenko
- Theatre Consultant: Theatre Projects (London); David Staples, Dave Agnes
- Acoustic Engineering Design: Marshall-Day (Melbourne, Hong Kong); Peter Fearnside, Peter Exton, Thomas Scelo
- Lighting Design: OVI (New York); Enrique Peininger, Jean Sundin and Markus Fuerderer
- Year: 2018
- Images: Courtesy of Zaha Hadid Architects