Zaha Hadid Concert Hall Coming
Zaha Hadid Architects have been commissioned to design a futuristic concert hall in Yekaterinburg, Russia. The project continues the late architect's legacy of bold, fluid forms and promises to set new standards for performance spaces.
The new Sverdlovsk Philharmonic Concert Hall is designed to house a 1,600-seat main auditorium and a 400-seat chamber music hall. The structure's signature feature is a massive, flowing canopy inspired by the physical properties of sound waves. This design allows the concert halls to be suspended within the canopy, appearing to float over a new public plaza that will serve as the lobby and an enclosed urban square. Large glass facades are intended to blur the line between the interior and the adjacent Weiner Gardens, which will be renovated as part of the project and include a new outdoor amphitheater. The project was commissioned to provide a new home for the Ural Philharmonic Orchestra, which was founded in 1936 and has outgrown its current venue. Zaha Hadid Architects won an international competition for the design, with their proposal selected from among 47 entries. However, the project's future is uncertain. In March 2022, Zaha Hadid Architects announced that it was placing its two ongoing projects in Russia, including the concert hall, on hold following the invasion of Ukraine.
