Project · 2013
Mieczysław Karłowicz Philharmonic
- Completion date
- 2013
- General contractor
- Warbud S.A.
The Mieczysław Karłowicz Philharmonic at ul. Małopolska 48 in Szczecin is one of the most recognisable contemporary cultural buildings in Poland, comprising, among other spaces, the Symphony Hall and the Chamber Hall. The building has 12,734 m² of usable floor area and was opened in 2014. The client was the City of Szczecin, the general contractor was Warbud S.A., and the design was produced by Estudio Barozzi Veiga in collaboration with Studio A4; the acoustic solutions were the responsibility of the Arau Acustica studio. The building's exceptional architecture was recognised internationally — in 2015 the Philharmonic received the Mies van der Rohe Award for the best contemporary building in Europe.
The Philharmonic's new home in Szczecin was designed as a building with the highest architectural, aesthetic and acoustic requirements. The winning design by the Barozzi/Veiga studio created a distinctive form that has become an icon of the city and has won prestigious architecture awards. The building, with an area of over 12,000 m², houses, among other spaces, the Symphony Hall and the Chamber Hall, designed to the highest global acoustic standards. The Symphony Hall's parameters are compared to those of Vienna's Musikverein, and the Chamber Hall is regarded as a benchmark for acoustic precision.
The Philharmonic's concert halls called for solutions in which the architectural form is strictly subordinated to acoustic requirements. The panels had to maintain a precisely designed geometry, appropriate sound absorption and diffusion parameters, and the highest surface quality, while at the same time forming an integral part of the distinctive interior design. The high acoustic requirements, the building's representative character and the complexity of the architecture meant that all installation work had to be carried out with the utmost precision and care.
For the general contractor, Warbud S.A., we carried out the installation of specialist wall and ceiling acoustic systems in the Philharmonic's concert halls. A particular part of the works was the execution of the panels finished with 24-carat gold leaf, which required exceptional installation precision, proper surface preparation, and the preservation of continuity and geometry across the entire system. The scope also included installing elements in the Golden Hall and the Black Hall, in line with the requirements of the architectural and acoustic design.
The greatest challenge was combining a high degree of installation precision with the demanding geometry of the acoustic system and the use of an exquisite finish in the form of 24-carat gold leaf. The precise installation of the panels made it possible to preserve the halls' acoustic assumptions while at the same time creating an exceptional visual quality of the interiors — particularly in the Golden Hall, where the gilded surfaces became one of the most distinctive elements of the entire building.