Swiss symphony — In the middle of the , Studio Seilern Architects has created an ambitious, world-class concert venue that responded to a long list of challenges and restrictions. The final result, the Andermatt Concert Hall, is both a thrilling sensory experience and a key part of this alpine town’s transformation. Words by Veronica Simpson

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160 Blueprint 365 Blueprint 365 161 5 From the central stage, the sound sweeps around in waves, The experience up the main hall, over the balcony and o the sides, enveloping of listening to the audience and the orchestra in perfectly modulated tones music here, as the sun sets over (thanks to acoustic consultant Kahle Acoustics). It’s a full-on the mountains, sensory experience, when daylight from the hall’s high is quite glazing washes over these pale, grooved, oiled oak panels, extraordinary bounces o the plexiglass clouds and bathes both musicians and music lovers in sound and light. The experience of listening to music here, as the sun sets over the mountains, is quite extraordinary — when it’s the Berlin Philharmonic, dubbed ‘the Rolls Royce of orchestras’, even more so. This is not just a new, world-class concert hall in the Swiss Alps — it is actually the only major concert hall in the Swiss Alps. It is a pivotal element in the strategy to transform this town back into the tourist and trading destination it rst aspired to be, in the 19th century as Europe’s leisured classes embraced rst the alpine spa, and then skiing, exploiting Andermatt’s strategic plateau position in the heart of the Saint-Gotthard Massif range. Served by three alpine passes, it is a major crossroads connecting landlocked to its European neighbours, aided by strong road and rail connections. Andermatt was in fact the rst town to have a Grand Hotel.

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But after the Second World War, when Switzerland decided it needed its own army — just in case its allies reneged on their promise of protection — it became a strategically advantageous location for a military base, with 100,000 Swiss troops stationed there annually, served by a town of just over 1,000 people. Who needed ski tourism? Soon Zermatt and other Swiss resorts had far outpaced this town in terms of tourist facilities, despite the charms of its old buildings. However, come the end of the Cold War, Switzerland no longer needed such an army; come the digital revolution, land forces became less important, and the army began a phased withdrawal of troops, which completed at the end of the 1990s. By 2005, the town’s economy and morale were at rock bottom, which is when the regional Uri government invited Egyptian property developer Samih Sawiris to come up with some ideas. Sawiris immediately saw the town’s potential to become a high-quality, year-round tourism destination. Given 100ha of land to play with, he formed a development vehicle,

Andermatt Swiss Alps, joined forces with commercial 4 Andermatt is developer Besix Group, and set about masterplanning a new situated in the heart of the Saint-Gotthard district, Andermatt , next to the old town. When Massif range in nished, it will boast an 18-hole golf course as well as multiple Switzerland hotels and apartments. It kicked o its reinvention in 2013, 5 The stage takes a central position in with the opening of the super-luxurious Chedi Andermatt the space, with the audience wrapped hotel (by architect Jean-Michel Gathy) in the old town, and around. Seilern now there are several chunky, chalet-esque apartment consulted orchestra members on optimal blocks (which can be owned and resold by foreign nationals layouts — something Switzerland rarely allows) surrounding the 6 (following spread) concert hall’s host hotel, The Radisson Blu. Up to 42 of these The concert hall announces its presence apartment blocks are planned overall (comprising 500 in the town with a apartments in total) for this new district, and options for a single-storey glazed pavilion on the central

select cluster of 25 or so private luxury villas alongside. square, Piazza Gottardo 5 – MONIKA RITTERSHAUS

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164 Blueprint 365 Blueprint 365 165 7 ‘Music is not Sawiris has a track record for thinking big. He is Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie and foremost representative of linear, music is currently transforming a former desert on the edge of the world-famous Nagata Acoustics. Says Seilern: ‘We met circular. It goes Egypt’s Red Sea into a high-end, sustainable tourism Yasu, and he said to us: “I don’t work on halls that are less everywhere. hotspot, masterplanned along Venetian lines with canal- than 12m high, so unless you give me 12m I’m not interested Therefore you have to put the front living; one of the highlights is a oating, colonnaded in this job.” So that was a very big point. Then [Daniel] music in the conference and cultural complex, complete with concert Barenboim walks into the meeting and at that moment, I middle of the hall, also designed by Studio Seilern. think even Samih was impressed.’ audience.’ Seilern rst heard about Sawiris’ Andermatt concert With the client convinced about height, Seilern knew she Daniel Barenboim hall plans when he asked her if she knew of an acoustician. could achieve her idea of lifting the roof of the hall up and She had just nished an elegant performance centre for creating the aforementioned glazed pavilion; existing planning Wellington College in the UK and had been involved in permission already allowed for one storey above ground level. multiple performance venues, such as Leicester’s Curve With Barenboim, legendary rst conductor of the Berlin Theatre, while she was running Rafael Viñoly’s London Philharmonic, in the room, Seilern decided to broach the oce, prior to setting up her own practice. ‘I had no idea he subject of moving the stage to a more central position was planning a concert hall, at the time. But I said I’d give — away from the more logical ‘shoebox’ position that the him an acoustician if he gave me a job,’ she says. So he concrete bunker’s dimensions suggested (an oblong format, showed her the basic concrete shell of the underground with the audience stacked in rows facing the stage). Says conference centre that had already been constructed at the Seilern: ‘There had been a lot of scepticism about that because back of the Radisson Blu Hotel Reussen.‘The rst thing we everybody knows the shoebox format. People asked me: had to convince him about was the size,’ says Seilern. ‘It was “Why are you changing this, are you trying to be interesting?” only adequate for a small chamber programme.’ I said it’s not about being interesting, it’s about the intimacy Seilern is clearly very well connected, and a serious and sitting close to the musicians and the relationship with music lover. She asked Sawiris to join her in Berlin to see the the audience.’ She knew Barenboim would support her view, new Pierre Boulez Saal, Frank Gehry’s intimate performance as his Saal places the orchestra in the middle with the audience space in the round that is part of the Barenboim-Said all around. So she asked him for feedback: ‘He said: “Music Akademie and which Seilern regards as one of the nest new is not linear, music is circular. It goes everywhere. Therefore performance spaces in Europe. When there, they met with you have to put the music in the middle of the audience.” the acoustician, Yasuhisa Toyota, lead consultant on Those were two very useful strategic comments,’ she says.

7 Flexible seating means the concert hall capacity can range from 455 to over 700

8 (following spread) Seilern sees the use of wood as a response to the alpine context

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168 Blueprint 365 Blueprint 365 169 9 9 Suspended from the ceiling and visible from outside are three plexiglass discs, shaped like floating clouds, designed both for acoustic attenuation and sculptural impact

The Berlin Philharmonic, in fact, seems to have played a You do research and you don’t know where it will take you. crucial role at several key points in the gestation of this new That rst sketch that I showed to Samih is very di erent hall. One nal intervention was when Seilern consulted the to what we have now, but the main idea was there from orchestra members about audience numbers. With the stage the very beginning. The story unfolds itself as you recongured within the concert hall’s original footprint, that discover things.’ left the audience space compromised. She says: ‘We asked But she agrees she couldn’t have asked for a better for their opinion and they said: “If the hall doesn’t have a reception — or more auspicious opening, graced by the certain number of rows in front of us we can’t play. We can’t Berlin Philharmonic. She also concedes that none of this have an orchestra playing in front of six rows.”’ This helped would have been achieved without deploying her strong her to win the argument for a mezzanine balcony wrapping powers of persuasion, but adds: ‘I have a very supportive around the space, doubling the audience to around 455 with client. He is an extraordinary client. For a good project you a full symphony orchestra of 75 musicians — and over 700 need a strong client.’ What elements, I ask, is Seilern most with a smaller, chamber ensemble, when the lower level satised with in the nished building? ‘I think the lightness, retractable seating can be rolled out. the surprise — and the joy, when I rst walked in,’ she says. However, this change meant further amendments to the ‘You see it on renderings and it’s never the same. And I existing structure. Overall, the original footprint of the always think these renderings are such lies. It’s now all about conference centre has changed radically, with the hotel this image-making architecture, which is heartbreaking.’ exterior brought in by an additional few metres to give more Given her stated ambitions to create architecture that space — and therefore impact — to the new entrance and speaks of place and deploys the best contemporary design glazed pavilion. A complete re-engineering programme had principles in a way that is culturally and aesthetically in tune to be devised to accommodate these adjustments. With no with the setting, what does she think connects this structure time or funding left to dig di erent foundations (on in this mountainous landscape? ‘I think the use of wood, all mountainous terrain, foundations are extremely expensive), of that is very alpine. And the colouring of the building — it the rear of the auditorium has had to be hung o the back of very much melds with the village. We didn’t want to make a the hotel foundations, via an innovative ‘backpack’ structure. huge architectural statement, because it would have been With all this ne tuning and reconguring in mind, the silly. It’s a little pedestrian street. There’s going to be another 1,764 sq m Andermatt Concert Hall clearly o ers a lot for its hotel right next door. We wanted to do something quite CHF11m (£8.8m) budget. Given that ingenious solutions often discreet up there and have these clouds and evoke the arise from dealing with impossible constraints, I ask Seilern elements. It’s connecting with the village and connecting if she would ever have designed something like this — with the atmosphere. However, this is also a cultural especially its modest entrance, and underground concert building, so because of that we can make it a bit more fun.’ hall — from scratch. ‘No,’ she replies, ‘because rst of all the Nevertheless, she had to ght to keep the pavilion’s foyer is too small. There are certain things that we couldn’t voluptuously curved glazing (square is so much cheaper). help. There was nothing we could do about it. But it’s like ‘There were months of discussions about that,’ she says. my favourite quote of DH Lawrence, which he said about How did she convince them? That came down to Sawiris: writing: “Sometimes you have to stop trusting the author ‘Samih always says you don’t spoil the suit by cutting out the

and trust the story and see where it takes you.” And that’s it. last ingredient.’ 9 – KANIPAK PHOTOGRAPHY

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