The promise of better acoustics is the whole raison d'être for l'Adresse symphonique
Toronto architects Diamond + Schmitt and a pair of acoustical consultants (Sound Space Design’s Bob Essert and Artec’s Tateo Nakajima) designed l’Adresse symphonique, the new 1,900 seat home of l’Orchestre symphonique de Montréal.Tom Arban/Handout
The first three rows of auditorium seating can also be rolled under the stage, to provide room for an orchestra pit. The staggered side walls and sculpted plaster strips above the stage help diffuse the sound.
The visible white plaster ceiling is actually a segmented canopy of curved acoustical panels, nine of which can be raised or lowered to suit different repertoire and ensembles.Tom Arban
Retractable curtains along the side walls and above the canopy can make the room sound livelier or less resonant.
There’s a curve or two in almost every vertical surface. The curves make for more satisfying sound reflections than flat surfaces would.Tom Arban
The glassed-in multilevel foyers, abundance of Quebec beech and exterior walls of Ontario limestone all recall a similar configuration at Diamond and Schmitt’s Four Seasons Centre in Toronto.Tom Arban
Everything outside the auditorium – backstage and front-of-house areas, foyers and delivery spaces – has been fit into a tight footprint at Place des Arts.Tom Arban