Northshore Concert Hall

First high school level dedicated concert hall in the state

Summary

Type

Location

Kenmore, Washington

Client

Northshore School District

size

36,000 square feet

Phase

Completed

Design Problem

Northshore School District's many music and theater programs had outgrown what the district could offer them. The existing performing arts center — shared across the district and the broader community — was stretched beyond its capacity. But the goal wasn't simply to build more of the same, but to build on a unique opportunity to give the community something it didn't have — a true concert hall with world-class acoustics — on a school budget.

Inglemoor High School's popular and award-winning music program had also outgrown its aged facility. The program needed more room, better-equipped spaces, and technology that could keep pace with its ambitions.

Combined with the need to replace the entire Inglemoor High School, the three goals converged to create a district-wide venue on Inglemoor's campus that would serve the music of the school, the district, and the community at large.

Design Approach

The project was conceived as the first phase of a four-part master plan to rebuild Inglemoor High School in place, each phase tied to a future bond cycle — turning a new concert hall and music building into the foundation of something larger.

Rendered conceptual site plan of a new high school with phase 1 highlighted. — The new music building would be the first phase of a multi-phase replacement of Inglemoor High School.

The distinction between another performing arts center and a concert hall mattered. Where a theater separates musicians from their audience, a concert hall places them in the same room, for optimal control of acoustics and listening experience. That acoustic logic drove every decision that followed — including the choice of the classic shoebox form, simple, proven, and found in some of the finest halls in the world.

Hand drawn conceptual sketch of a building with a large covered entry with sunscreen and a sloped roof mass behind. — Sketch of the shoebox concert hall with a covered entry, lobby, and support spaces embracing it.

Sketch studies of a concert hall stage with angled walls and floating ceiling panels. — Various studies of the stage during the acoustical shaping of the space.

Primary purposes of the elegant columns - sized and spaced as a musical major scale - is to direct sound waves and mask the lighting catwalks.

Results

The 750-seat hall with balcony anchors the building and delivers on its acoustic promise. Because a classical concert hall has no stage wings, openings were carved into the stage surround to allow musicians to enter and exit from either side. Large concealed doors at the rear of the stage provide access for a concert grand piano, timpani, and other oversized instruments. Every practical need was worked into the architecture without sacrificing the logic of the room.

Acoustical modeling shaped the hall including the angled diffusers around the stage, the ceiling canopies, and the white colonnade.

Entering the stage: performers from the hall or entry alcoves, large instruments through the hidden doors from the backstage area.

Musical theory left its mark on the details: patterns derived from musical scales and song forms appear in the guardrails, the wood paneling, and the colonnade that shapes the sound of the hall. A two-story glass lobby with a grand stair provides a welcoming gathering space before and after performances — visible as a lit beacon from the campus entry on the far side of the school.

Morphing music theory into physical patterns.

From the grand stair, the lobby as a whole - including the balcony, stair, and main floor - is a gathering area.

Attention to details include patterns reflecting musical theory.

On the building's quieter side, light-filled music rooms, a student stair, a balcony, and practice spaces give Inglemoor's music program a home it has earned — the first dedicated high school concert hall in Washington State.