Sibelius Hall (Lahti, Finland)
Sibelius Hall
The Sibelius Hall is a concert hall in Lahti, Finland, named after the composer Jean Sibelius.
The concert hall was completed in 2000. Architects Kimmo Lintula and Hannu Tikka designed the hall, which is made out of glulam. The acoustics were engineered by Artec Consultants, New York. Its acoustics are one of its strongest points, while the architecture follows the Scandinavian tradition of sophisticated design. The concert hall has a capacity of 1,250 seats.
The Sibelius Hall is home to the Lahti Symphony Orchestra.
The Main Hall is an acoustic miracle. Its unique surroundings create unforgettable musical memories for the concert visitors. The auditorium, the stage and the balconies from an oval structure inside the so-called shoebox hall. Adjustable acoustics is achieved by a moving canopy above the stage, the reverberance chambers along the sidewalls with 188 acoustics doors and the woolen acoustic banners. The auditorium’s corrugated walls scatter reflecting sounds. Space has been reserved for a concert organ behind the stage balcony.
The sophisticated colouring of the Main Hall is a combination of graphite grey, natural white and the warm red of old string instruments. The floor is made of oil- and heat-treated smoke birch parquet. A glass facade covers the massive wall elements, the sandwich-structured laminated veneer lumber panels, filled with sand (18 cm thick insulation) and mineral wool. The vast open space between the glass wall and the elements improves the hall’s sound insulation. All main Hall’s load-bearing structures are made of glued laminated timber.
The entrances to the seats on the main floor are through the reverberance chambers while the entrances to the balconies are directly from the Forest Hall balconies.