A new concert house with the highest acoustic and architectural standards is planned to be built in Munich. The State of Bavaria commissioned Arup to design the room acoustics of the concert halls which will offer artists and audience a sound of the highest calibre.

The design of the new concert house envisaged two concert halls: a symphonic concert hall with 1,800 seats, which will also be home to the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, and a smaller concert hall with 600 seats, which will offer a flexible environment for innovative artistic performance formats with a wide range of audiovisual options in line with the latest design standards.

Munich is home to world-class ensembles like the Choir and the Symphonic Orchestra of Bayerischer Rundfunk (BRSO) and has also a lively concert and music scene. The state of Bavaria decided to create a cultural environment in the Werksviertel Munich to match this artistic qualities. Arup has not only developed world-class room acoustics for the two concert halls of the new concert building, but has also taken into account the cultural identity of the city of Munich, thus creating the framework for a unique musical experience.

World-class sound with coupled volumes

Our specialists from London and Berlin - under the direction of the leading acoustician Tateo Nakajima - intensively analysed the cultural identity of Bavaria and Munich in particular when developing the sound for the large concert hall. Our design envisages the coupling of two sound volumes, which – together with variable acoustic elements - produce a warm and sophisticated sound that spreads throughout the entire hall and creates a unique sound experience for a variety of concert settings. The listener can perceive even the finest nuances. Providing a panoramic sound, the concept pays justice to Munich as a city of culture and music, thus emphasizing the city's identity.  

The small concert hall was conceived to offer flexibility in terms of technology and sound to create an environment for modern digital performance formats. Our design envisaged room acoustics with subtle reverberance, allowing incisiveness and clarity for both natural and electronically amplified sound experiences.Both concert halls have been designed to provide the orchestra's musicians with an excellent working environment. 

After completion of the scheme design, it was decided for political reasons not to continue the project in this form.