Helsinki Music Centre
Encyclopedia
The Helsinki Music Centre is a concert hall and a music center in Töölönlahti, Helsinki
. The building is home to Sibelius Academy
and two symphony orchestras, the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
and the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra
.
The Music Centre is located on a prestigious site between Finlandia Hall
and the museum of contemporary art Kiasma
, and across the street from the Parliament of Finland
. The vineyard-type main concert hall seats 1,704 people. The building contains five smaller rooms for 140–400 listeners. These include a chamber music hall, a chamber opera hall, an organ hall, a 'black box' room for electrically amplified music and a rehearsal hall. The smaller rooms are used regularly by the students of Sibelius Academy for their training and student concerts.
conducted some of his works, was damaged in World War II. Eventually Finlandia Hall, designed by Alvar Aalto
, was completed in 1971 and it became one of the major venues for concerts, but the building was conceived as a mixed use conference centre and the acoustics of the main hall were never satisfactory. The Sibelius Academy expressed interest in a new concert hall in 1992, and formal planning started 1994 as the two major symphony orchestras of Helsinki, the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Helsinki Philharmonic joined the project. A two-part architectural competition on the design was held in 1999 and 2000 for a site at Töölönlahti, opposite the Parliament House. The competition was won by the Turku-based
LPR Architects, with then 30-year old architect Marko Kivistö as chief designer.
Prior to the Music Centre, the former VR warehouses
stood on the site. Various lively grassroots activities had sprung up around the warehouses, and the Music Centre plan drew voluminous criticism for proposing to tear down spontaneous urban culture and replace it with a costly building for institutionalized classical music. Helsinki City Council approved the Music Centre project in 2002. In 2007 the board of the Helsinki Music Centre approved a bid by the construction company SRV
to build the centre.
Jyrki Katainen
held a speech at the event.
Before the formal completion of the building, the Finnish national broadcasting company YLE used it to host the election night broadcast for the Finnish parliamentary election, 2011
on 17 April. YLE invited all party leaders to the still half-finished Music Centre for a live broadcast as the nation waited for the results to come in.
The completed building was formally approved and turned over to the owners at the end of April 2011. However, the formal opening ceremony and concert was held months later on 31 August 2011, which allowed time for the musicians to get accustomed to the new concert hall and for the builders to complete the landscaping around the building. The program of the opening concert included various performances by the students of Sibelius Academy, Sibelius's Tapiola and songs performed by the Helsinki Philharmonic (conductor John Storgårds
) and soprano Soile Isokoski
, Stravinsky's Rite of Spring performed by the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra (conductor Sakari Oramo
), and Sibelius's Finlandia performed by a jointly by both orchestras and the choir of Sibelius Academy (conductor Jukka-Pekka Saraste
).
The budget of approximately 160 million euros at the start of the construction was exceeded, the final cost standing at 189 million, including technical equipment. The expenditure was criticized in public debate, but the cost of the building is quite measured compared to e.g. a similar concert hall in Copenhagen built around the same time, or even the per-square-metre cost of new housing in Helsinki.
. The acoustics of the main concert hall have received uniform praise in initial estimations by the conductors and musicians of the two symphony orchestras.
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
. The building is home to Sibelius Academy
Sibelius Academy
The Sibelius Academy is a university-level music school which operates in Helsinki and Kuopio, Finland. It also has an adult education centre in Järvenpää and a training centre in Seinäjoki. The Academy is the only music university in Finland. It is among the biggest European music universities...
and two symphony orchestras, the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
The Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra is a Finnish orchestra based in Helsinki, and is the chief radio orchestra of the Finnish Broadcasting Company . The orchestra primarily gives concerts at the Helsinki Music Centre...
and the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra
Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra
The Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra is an orchestra based in Helsinki, Finland...
.
The Music Centre is located on a prestigious site between Finlandia Hall
Finlandia Hall
Finlandia Hall is a concert hall with a congress wing in Helsinki, Finland, by Töölönlahti bay. The building was designed by Alvar Aalto. The work began in 1967 and was completed in 1971.-Design and building:...
and the museum of contemporary art Kiasma
Kiasma
Kiasma is a contemporary art museum located on Mannerheimintie in Helsinki, Finland. Its name kiasma, Finnish for chiasma, alludes to the basic conceptual idea of its architect, Steven Holl. The museum exhibits the contemporary art collection of the Finnish National Gallery founded in 1990...
, and across the street from the Parliament of Finland
Eduskuntatalo
Parliament House is the seat of the Parliament of Finland. It is located in the Finnish capital of Helsinki, in the district of Töölö.-History:In 1923 a competition was held to choose a site for a new Parliament House...
. The vineyard-type main concert hall seats 1,704 people. The building contains five smaller rooms for 140–400 listeners. These include a chamber music hall, a chamber opera hall, an organ hall, a 'black box' room for electrically amplified music and a rehearsal hall. The smaller rooms are used regularly by the students of Sibelius Academy for their training and student concerts.
Planning
Classical musicians in Helsinki had desired a purpose-built concert hall at least since the hall of the University of Helsinki, where Jean SibeliusJean Sibelius
Jean Sibelius was a Finnish composer of the later Romantic period whose music played an important role in the formation of the Finnish national identity. His mastery of the orchestra has been described as "prodigious."...
conducted some of his works, was damaged in World War II. Eventually Finlandia Hall, designed by Alvar Aalto
Alvar Aalto
Hugo Alvar Henrik Aalto was a Finnish architect and designer. His work includes architecture, furniture, textiles and glassware...
, was completed in 1971 and it became one of the major venues for concerts, but the building was conceived as a mixed use conference centre and the acoustics of the main hall were never satisfactory. The Sibelius Academy expressed interest in a new concert hall in 1992, and formal planning started 1994 as the two major symphony orchestras of Helsinki, the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Helsinki Philharmonic joined the project. A two-part architectural competition on the design was held in 1999 and 2000 for a site at Töölönlahti, opposite the Parliament House. The competition was won by the Turku-based
Turku
Turku is a city situated on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River. It is located in the region of Finland Proper. It is believed that Turku came into existence during the end of the 13th century which makes it the oldest city in Finland...
LPR Architects, with then 30-year old architect Marko Kivistö as chief designer.
Prior to the Music Centre, the former VR warehouses
VR warehouses
The VR warehouses were a group of redbrick railway warehouses in the centre of Helsinki, Finland. Their official address was 13 Mannerheimintie. The oldest parts of the warehouses were designed by Bruno Granholm and built in 1898–1899, when they served as the cargo terminal for the Helsinki...
stood on the site. Various lively grassroots activities had sprung up around the warehouses, and the Music Centre plan drew voluminous criticism for proposing to tear down spontaneous urban culture and replace it with a costly building for institutionalized classical music. Helsinki City Council approved the Music Centre project in 2002. In 2007 the board of the Helsinki Music Centre approved a bid by the construction company SRV
SRV
SRV may refer to:In computing:*SRV record as used in the Domain Name System*/srv, a directory on Unix-like computer systemsIn music:*Stevie Ray Vaughan, American blues musician...
to build the centre.
Construction
The foundation stone was laid on October 22, 2008. Minister of FinanceMinister of Finance (Finland)
The Minister of Finance of Finland handles the Finance of Finland and all other matters covered by the Ministry of Finance...
Jyrki Katainen
Jyrki Katainen
Jyrki Tapani Katainen is the Prime Minister of Finland and chairman of the country's largest party, the National Coalition Party.-Career:...
held a speech at the event.
Before the formal completion of the building, the Finnish national broadcasting company YLE used it to host the election night broadcast for the Finnish parliamentary election, 2011
Finnish parliamentary election, 2011
An election to the Eduskunta was held on 17 April 2011 after the termination of the previous parliamentary term. Advance voting, which included voting by Finnish expatriates, was held between 6 and 12 April with a turnout of 31.2%....
on 17 April. YLE invited all party leaders to the still half-finished Music Centre for a live broadcast as the nation waited for the results to come in.
The completed building was formally approved and turned over to the owners at the end of April 2011. However, the formal opening ceremony and concert was held months later on 31 August 2011, which allowed time for the musicians to get accustomed to the new concert hall and for the builders to complete the landscaping around the building. The program of the opening concert included various performances by the students of Sibelius Academy, Sibelius's Tapiola and songs performed by the Helsinki Philharmonic (conductor John Storgårds
John Storgårds
John Gunnar Rafael Storgårds is a Finnish violinist and conductor.Storgårds studied violin with Esther Raitio and Jouko Ignatius at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, and continued his violin studies with Chaim Taub in Israel. He was a founding member of the Avanti! Chamber Orchestra...
) and soprano Soile Isokoski
Soile Isokoski
Soile Isokoski is a Finnish lyric soprano. She is an opera singer as well as a concert and lieder singer.- Career :Isokoski was born in Posio...
, Stravinsky's Rite of Spring performed by the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra (conductor Sakari Oramo
Sakari Oramo
Sakari Markus Oramo OBE is a Finnish conductor.Oramo started his career as a violinist and concertmaster of the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra. In 1989, he enrolled in Jorma Panula's conducting class at the Sibelius Academy...
), and Sibelius's Finlandia performed by a jointly by both orchestras and the choir of Sibelius Academy (conductor Jukka-Pekka Saraste
Jukka-Pekka Saraste
Jukka-Pekka Saraste is a Finnish conductor and violinist.Saraste was trained as a violinist. He later studied conducting at the Sibelius Academy with Jorma Panula, in the same class as Esa-Pekka Salonen and Osmo Vänskä...
).
The budget of approximately 160 million euros at the start of the construction was exceeded, the final cost standing at 189 million, including technical equipment. The expenditure was criticized in public debate, but the cost of the building is quite measured compared to e.g. a similar concert hall in Copenhagen built around the same time, or even the per-square-metre cost of new housing in Helsinki.
Acoustics
The acoustics consultant for the building was Yasuhisa ToyotaYasuhisa Toyota
is an acoustician who has been chief acoustician for over 50 projects worldwide, including the Walt Disney Concert Hall, Suntory Hall in Tokyo, the Bard College Performing Arts Center in New York, and the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts in Kansas City. He is the company director and U.S...
. The acoustics of the main concert hall have received uniform praise in initial estimations by the conductors and musicians of the two symphony orchestras.