von Gerkan, Marg and Partners Architects 01 Press Release 2017-04-28 Re-opening of the Kulturpalast, Dresden A new departure: combining culture, education, and entertainment The 28th of April is the big day the new concert hall in the Kulturpalast in Dresden will be ceremonially opened with a festive program. On the day after, the rooms of the other main functions of the Kulturpalast, i.e. the new central library and the Herkuleskeule cabaret venue, will be inaugurated. The refurbishment of the existing part of the building, which is listed as a historic monument, and the new building of the concert hall with about 1,800 seats, which will be used by the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra amongst others, have been completed to a design by architects von Gerkan, Marg and Partners (gmp) who won the competition for the project in 2009. For further information please contact: Claudia Tiesler T +49.40.88 151 123 M +49.151.14 66 77 95 ctiesler@gmp-architekten.de www.gmp-architekten.de PR & Communications Elbchaussee 139 22763 Hamburg T +49.40.88 151 0 F +49.40.88 151 177 communication@ gmp-architekten.de www.gmp-architekten.de
Page 2 of 7 The conversion and refurbishment of the Kulturpalast Dresden involved no less than a rethink of the architectural concept of a culture palace, with a modified user program but nevertheless based on the historic identity of the venue. While the exterior of the building, which is an outstanding example of the modern style in the GDR, was largely restored to its original design dating from 1969, the spatial organization and circulation of the interior were redefined. The design of the Palace takes account of its unique central position between Altmarkt, Schloss, and Neumarkt, providing an all-round orientation with direct access from all three main facades. The combination of culture, education, and entertainment, which will ensure that the venue is much frequented by quite different user groups, has its spatial focal point in the large foyer facing south towards the Altmarkt, which will now be the main access point to all three main functions and will thus become a very busy and lively place. The Herkuleskeule cabaret venue is located beneath the concert hall which, in the two upper stories, is snuggly surrounded by the rooms of the library. The interior design of these rooms features a simple, minimalist choice of materials, and furnishings that have been specially designed by gmp. The bright red color of the textile surfaces has been adopted from the original building and has been replicated as a leitmotif in all main functional areas. At the heart of the building, the concert hall which has been designed to accommodate other functions as well has been re-developed in a style that is neither secondary to the existing style elements nor deliberately contrasting with these, but that rather aims for a respectful and charged dialogue with the existing building fabric. Its architecture follows the vineyard model, with terraced seating that fits with the geometry of the hexagonal arrangement of the approved layout. In contrast to the warm color of the wooden terraces, the white waves of the walls slowly move from the regular geometry of the layout until they join up at the ceiling of the hall. The concert organ, with its 55 registers, is unique in Dresden, and particularly suitable for the symphony repertoire of the 19th and 20th centuries. In order to generate the desired combination of transparency and warmth of tone that supports the traditionally somewhat darker sound of the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra, close cooperation was required between the architects, the acoustics engineers, and the orchestra. This process has resulted in a concert hall that meets all requirements for concert uses, from the reverberation time to the acoustic space impression and the clear communication between the musicians themselves, which was a major focus. With this new Kulturpalast concept, Dresden has now for the first time been given not only a concert hall of international standing, but also an open venue of culture and knowledge, and a place of informal civic encounters and communication which continues the lively tradition of the building.
Page 3 of 7 Data of project International competition 2009 1st Prize Design Meinhard von Gerkan and Stephan Schütz with Nicolas Pomränke Project management, competition Clemens Kampermann Competition design Verena Coburger Project management Christian Hellmund Design team Clemens Ahlgrimm, Roman Bender, Stephanie Brendel, Verena Coburger, Ivanka Perkovic, Annette Löber, Anna Liesicke, Ursula Köper, Tiago Henriques, Laia Caparo, Julius Hüpeden, Patrick Machnacki, Giuseppina Orto, Michael Scholz, René Wiegand, Dörte Groß, Florian Illenberger, Laura Warskulat (student), Ralitsa Bikova (student), Robin Lauritzen (student), Jessika Krebs (student) Site supervision gmp Bernd Adolf, in cooperation with phase 8 Structural design Professor Pfeifer and partner PartGmbB, structural engineers, Cottbus Building physics building and room acoustics Peutz bv, Mook, The Netherlands ADA Acoustic Design Ahnert, Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. W. Ahnert, Berlin Fire protection hhpberlin Ingenieure für Brandschutz GmbH, Berlin Stage technology theapro, theater projekte daberto + kollegen planungsgesellschaft mbh, Munich Services engineering Planungsgruppe M+M AG, Dresden (up to design phase 3) Consortium of IB Rathenow BPS and Solares Bauen GmbH (from design phase 5) Lighting design Conceptlicht GmbH, Traunreut Client KID Kommunales Immobilienmanagement Dresden GmbH & Co KG Construction period 2013 2017 GFA 37,062 m² Concert hall, Dresdner Philharmonie 1,750 seats, incl. 18 wheelchair places Cabaret hall, Die Herkuleskeule 240 seats, incl. 2 wheelchair places Central library 5,463 m²
Page 4 of 7 The architects gmp von Gerkan, Marg and Partners Architects The architects practice gmp was formed in 1965 by Meinhard von Gerkan and Volkwin Marg. Today the practice has over 500 members of staff and operates from 11 locations worldwide. From the very beginning, gmp has been one of the few practices with a generalist position and which approaches projects in a holistic way in each scale and each design phase from the outline idea through to the detailed design and construction. In national and international architectural competitions, gmp has won more than 380 first prizes, and more than 410 projects have been completed to date. The public culture buildings completed by gmp include the Music and Conference Hall, Lübeck, the Neue Weimarhalle congress center, the Neues Tempodrom Berlin, Tianjin Grand Theater (China), Qingdao Grand Theater (China), Chongqing Grand Theater (China). Working with existing buildings and/or designing projects in traditional surroundings has also been a firm component of gmp s portfolio for many years. In addition to the numerous projects in Hamburg s HafenCity, more recent examples include the conversion of the Berlin Olympic Stadium, the Chinese National Museum in Beijing, and Hans-Sachs-Haus in Gelsenkirchen. The basics of building On old Foundations were presented in gmp s offices during an exhibition of the same name, which could also be seen on the occasion of the 2014 Architecture Biennale in Venice. Design Prof. Dr. h.c. mult. Dipl.-Ing. Architect BDA Meinhard von Gerkan Founding partner of gmp von Gerkan, Marg and Partners Architects together, with Volkwin Marg Dipl.-Ing. Architect BDA Stephan Schütz Partner at gmp von Gerkan, Marg and Partners Architects management of the gmp offices in Berlin, Beijing, and Shenzhen, Dipl.-Ing. Architect Nicolas Pomränke Associate Partner at gmp von Gerkan, Marg and Partners Architects Project manager Dipl.-Ing. Architect Christian Hellmund Associate Director at gmp von Gerkan, Marg and Partners Architects
gmp von Gerkan, Marg and Partners Architects Page 5 of 7 02 03 04 05 08 06 07 To download high resolution images use the following link: http://www.gmp-architekten.com/news/press-release.html Charge-free printing is only permitted when naming the architects and authors of images and plans. 01 Concert hall Christian Gahl /gmp Architects 02 Kulturpalast at night Christian Gahl/gmp Architects 03 Kulturpalast Christian Gahl /gmp Architects 04 Main foyer Christian Gahl /gmp Architects 05 Access to the concert hall Christian Gahl/gmp Architects 06 + 07 Concert hall Christian Gahl /gmp Architects
Page 6 of 7 08 09 10 11 To download high resolution images use the following link: http://www.gmp-architekten.com/news/press-release.html Charge-free printing is only permitted when naming the architects and authors of images and plans. 08 Access concert hall Christian Gahl/gmp Architects 09 Herkuleskeule Christian Gahl/ gmp Architects 10 Central library Christian Gahl/ gmp Architects 11 Reading room Christian Gahl/ gmp Architects
gmp von Gerkan, Marg and Partners Architects Page 7 of 7 0 5 10 12 13 14 15 0 0 5 10 5 10 16 17 To download high resolution images use the following link: http://www.gmp-architekten.com/news/press-release.html Charge-free printing is only permitted when naming the architects and authors of images and plans. 12 Floorplan first floor gmp Architects 13 Concert hall, 3D-section gmp Architects 14 Floorplan first mezzanine floor gmp Architects 15 Concert hall cross section gmp Architects 16 Floorplan third floor gmp Architects 17 Concert hall longitudinal section gmp Architects