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Crystal Room
Curve
MacPhail Center for Music
Royal Playhouse
Soundhouse
Swope Music School and Performing Arts Center
Arts Building and Commons, Thacher School
Westminster Rose CenterCrystal Room
Hans Hollein carves out a diamond in the rough with a crystalline performance space inside a medieval fortress.
As a general rule, hard, flat surfaces produce lousy acoustics. Hans Hollein however, has been writing his own rules for decades. In his very first built performance space, the Pritzker Prize—winning architect insisted on using glass. “I’ve always wanted to prove that you can create exceptional acoustics in a space made entirely of glass or stone,” says Hollein. He finally got his chance when designing the Crystal Room (Kristallsaal) inside Rothschildschloss, a medieval castle in the picturesque town of Waidhofen an der Ybbs, a 2-hour drive west of Hollein’s Vienna office.
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Program
Hollein made several interventions to the castle — most notably, a 20-foot-tall glass box atop the main tower — which recently opened to the public. Though a museum occupies most of the restored structure, the town also required a performance space for annual music festivals and a yearlong program of classical and jazz concerts.
Solution
Nestled within the upper floors of the castle, the double-height volume, clad almost entirely in translucent glass, is an unexpected sight given its context and function.
Pieced together like a puzzle, glass panels of varying size and shape fan out across the room like the bellows of an accordion. Hollein’s design of the folds was intuitive, confirmed later by an acoustician.
Ceiling panels hang from newly installed steel rafters, tilting upward to a zigzagging band of wood-backed, perforated aluminum panels that absorb sound. Wall panels — many of which are not completely vertical — conceal existing windows, but allow for some daylight to pass through. (Neon tubes along the floor behind the walls are switched on during performances, giving the room a cool, blue glow.) Circular fasteners, which affix the panels to their supports, create a visual rhythm. Gaps between ceiling panels were left open, but sealed between wall panels to address aesthetic, not acoustic, concerns.
The glass is laminated to meet fire-code requirements and to temper its sound-reflecting qualities. For musical performances, seating radiates around an elevated stage, which can be removed to accommodate a straight seating pattern for lectures, readings, films (shown on a flat screen integrated into the back wall), and meetings. A small balcony offers additional seating, for a total of 200.
Commentary
Hollein hits a high note; his intimate, cloudlike concert space is the perfect place to get swept away by music. Reviews for its acoustics have also been favorable. A resounding stamp of approval came from a local violinist, who used it as a recording studio.
Formal name of project:
Rothschildschloss
Kristall-Saal (Concert Hall)
Integrated with Conference Area and 5e Museum
Location: 3340 Waidhofen an der Ybbs, Austria
Owner (client):
City of Waidhofen an der Ybbs
Mayor Mag. Wolfgang Mair
Mag. Werner Krammer (Cultural Counsellor)
Date of Completion: April 2007
Architect:
Prof. Hans Hollein, HFAIA
Licensed architect
Argentinierstraße 36
1040 Vienna
Austria
Phone. +431-505 51 96
Fax: +431-505 88 94
e-mail: office@hollein.com
www.hollein.com
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