Benaroya Hall
Seattle, Washington
Project Size:
187,000 square feetSeating capacity: 2,500 concert / 540 recital seats
Project Status:
Completed 1998
Press
In Seattle, Civic Pride Builds Music a Home
The New York Times, 9/1/98
Seattle's Sound Investment… the new Benaroya Hall is the Crown Jewel in the City's Plan to Weave a World-Class Arts Infrastructure into its Downtown Core
The Los Angeles Times, 9/1/98
Finally, A Place to Call Its Own
Financial Times, 10/1/98
They Do Things Better Over There
The Sunday Telegraph (London), 10/1/98
Selected Awards
2001 AIA
National Honor Award
1999 AIA
Northwest & Pacific Region Honor Award
1999 AIA
Washington Council Civic Design Honor Award
1999 Lumen
West Award
1999 International Illumination
Design Award of Merit
1998 AIA
Seattle Chapter Award of Merit
Home to the Seattle Symphony Orchestra and occupying an entire downtown block, Benaroya Hall embraces its civic and cultural presence with a multi-layered expression of public realm. The architecture integrates the power of the music performance with the substance of urban community.
From the circular main lobby, expansive bay windows provide sweeping views of the cityscape and the bay; at night, they create an urban-scale lantern that animates the presence of the building within the downtown skyline. Active at all hours of the day and evening, a block-long arcade provides access to both concert halls as well as shops, cafes, ticket office, parking garage and an underground transit station.
Inside the concert hall, architecture and acoustics are melded into a seamless performance experience. The hall’s enclosing surfaces are made of deeply colored mahogany. The lighter hues of balcony fronts, coffered ceiling panels and stage enclosure enhance the connection of audience to stage visually and acoustically. Superior sound quality is assured by the hall’s precise geometry of wood and plaster surfaces, while the carefully detailed joinery and exposed fasteners of the wood paneling are inspired by the craftsmanship of musical instruments.