arch1390-MikeXia: September 2009

From the stainless steel curves of its striking exterior to the state of the art acoustics of the hardwood-paneled main auditorium, frank Gehry’s Walt Disney concert Hall is one of the most acoustically sophisticated concert halls in the world and it is destined to be a new architectural landmark.
The Walt Disney Concert Hall is located on a historically and culturally prominent downtown site, the Walt Disney Concert Hall is to become the permanent home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. The Concert Hall is situated on historic Bunker Hill at the intersection of First Street and Grand Avenue, adjacent to the existing Music Center of Los Angeles.
The project began as an invited design competition, during which many of the fundamental design tenets were established. These include an open and accessible main entrance, a sympathetic and inclusive attitude in the building's relationship to the Music Center's existing Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, a pedestrian scale frontage along Grand Avenue, a generous and open backstage area, and a large garden. The end result of Frank Gehry’s 6 months of work is none other than astonishing is was described by Paul Goldberger as ‘It is a serene, ennobling building that will give people in this city of private places a new sense of the pleasures of public space.’
Frank Gehrys design is focused on the 2265 seat main concert hall, whose interior and form are a direct expression of acoustical parameter. Seating surrounds the orchestra platform. Inside the hall, the wood walls and the sail like wooden ceiling forms give one the impression of being within a great ship. A pipe organ designed in conjunction with the interiors occupies a central position between the seating blocks at stage rear. Skylight and a large window at the rear of the hall to allow natural light to enhance daytime concerts.
The exterior of the hall consists of stinless steel panels. The building’s orientation and curving and folding exterior walls present highly sculptural compositions as viewers move along adjacent streets and through the surrounding gardens and plazas.

Iron: Erecting the Walt Disney Concert HallBy Gil GarcettiPublisher: Balcony Press
Symphony:Frank Gehry's Walt Disney Concert HallFrank Gehry (Introduction)Deborah Borda (Preface)Publisher: iPublish.com;