herzog & de meuron's elbphilharmonie to open in early 2017

herzog & de meuron’s elbphilharmonie to open in early 2017
image © thies rätzke
all images courtesy of elbphilharmonie

the local government of hamburg has announced that the city’s ‘elbphilharmonie’ concert hall will open its doors to the public on january 11th, 2017. designed by herzog & de meuron, the much-anticipated project will include a 250-room hotel, along with 45 waterfront residential units. following the complete reorganization of the scheme in the spring of 2013, construction of the concert hall has continued to make good progress. the roof has been watertight since august 2014, and now the construction of the project’s complex interior is forging ahead.

the architecture of the main auditorium is taking shape
image © johannes arlt

internally, the vast architecture of the main auditorium is taking shape, while external renovations to the façade of the old brick warehouse have been completed, and the scaffolding almost completely removed. above the previously existing structure, an undulating glass volume floats; composed of 1,100 individual panels, each measuring four to five metes wide and weighing approximately 1.2 tonnes.

additionally, the scheme’s 4,000 square meter plaza will open to the public in november 2016. at a height of 30 meters, it affords a 360° panoramic view of the city and the neighboring harbor.

the sound reflector at the pinnacle of the auditorium
image © oliver heissner

after construction began in 2007, the project targeted an initial completion date of 2010. according to the senate, the cost to the city of hamburg has increased dramatically to a total of 789 million euros ($934 million), though a portion of that is expected to be covered by investors. initially, costs had been estimated at a mere 77 million euros.

a detail of the giant reflector
image © oliver heissner

looking upwards from the center of the main auditorium
image © johannes arlt

the project’s so-called ‘light-rift’
image © oliver heissner

the scheme’s undulating roofscape
image © oliver heissner

the concert hall will open to the public in early 2017
image © thies rätzke

image © herzog de meuron