Walt Disney Concert Hall
The Walt Disney Concert Hall is a concert venue in Los Angeles designed by Frank Gehry and opened in 2003. It is named after the film producer Walt Disney and is home to the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra .
description
The complex is located on the hill of Bunker Hill at 111 South Grand Avenue in downtown Los Angeles and is bordered by Hope Street, Grand Avenue and 1st and 2nd Streets. It is one of four event buildings of the Los Angeles Music Center , one of the largest performing arts centers in the United States.
The Walt Disney Concert Hall, which opened on October 23, 2003 according to plans by the architect and designer Frank Gehry, is one of the most important concert halls in the world because of its modern acoustics and architecture. While the architecture (as with other works by Gehry) aroused mixed opinions, the acoustics of the concert hall received widespread praise, in contrast to the nearby Dorothy Chandler Pavilion .
The building houses the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Gustavo Dudamel and the Los Angeles Master Chorale . The construction of the concert hall is the result of a public-private partnership initiative between Lillian Disney (1899–1997), other members of the Disney family as well as sponsors and Los Angeles County .
The stainless steel building is shaped like a large sailing ship with curved and undulating outlines. It has an area of 2,140 square meters and space for 2,265 visitors. In addition to the concert hall, the building complex houses wide foyers , which are joined by numerous side rooms for introductory events and private gatherings. A garden was created on the roof of the building. Gehry designed a fountain made of fragments of Delft porcelain in honor of Lillian Disney, who donated $ 50 million for the concert hall alone. Visiting the entire building complex including the roof garden is free.
The ceiling in the form of wooden arches and the staggered arrangement of the seats provide modern acoustics and the character of a traditional concert hall. Yasuhisa Toyota , one of the main experts in this sector, was responsible for the acoustics of the sound box . The seats have been arranged around the orchestra stage and in the back there is a pipe organ in the middle of the seats.
organ
The organ was completed in 2004. The instrument was built by the organ builders Rosales and Caspar Glatter-Götz (Pfullendorf). The unusual prospectus design was designed by the architect Frank Gehry . The instrument has 104 registers with 6125 pipes . 87 sounding stops and 17 transmissions are distributed over four manuals and pedal . The playing and stop actions are electric.
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Trivia
The architect and the building are the subject of an episode of the animated series The Simpsons . In the 14th episode of the 16th season , Marge Simpson asks guest star Frank Gehry to plan a concert hall for Springfield . Disinterested, Gehry crumples the letter of appeal and throws it on the sidewalk, but is then spontaneously inspired by the sight of the wad of paper to design the concert hall. The residents of Springfield are enthusiastic at first and let Gehry build the building, but flee the hall at the inauguration concert after the first bars of Beethoven's Fifth . The concert hall is then bought by the wealthy Mister Burns and converted into a prison.
The Walt Disney Concert Hall is also a central location in the film drama The Soloist from 2009, the film tells about a homeless and schizophrenic cellist. Actors Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jr. can be seen in the two main roles .
Five-time Oscar winner John Williams wrote the opening music with Soundings (2009).
It is reported that the building, with its highly shiny curved surface, focuses sunlight so strongly that motorists are dazzled, which is hazardous to health. Adjacent apartments are also uncomfortably heated.
Web links
- Official website of the Walt Disney Concert Hall / Los Angeles Philharmonic
- Official website of the Los Angeles Music Center
Individual evidence
- ↑ Torsten Meyer, Journey through the City of Angels, ISBN 978-3-7386-2083-2
- ↑ Information about the organ on the organ builder's website
- ↑ Comprehensive information about the organ on the organ builder's website. Retrieved June 12, 2019 .
- ↑ Los Angeles Times, June 7, 2005: Gehry and Disney Do a Star Turn with Marge and Homer , accessed December 7, 2014.
Coordinates: 34 ° 3 ′ 19 ″ N , 118 ° 15 ′ 0 ″ W.