 | |
 Interactive map of Elbphilharmonie | |
| Address | Platz der Deutschen Einheit 20457Hamburg,Germany[1] |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 53°32′29″N9°59′03″E / 53.54139°N 9.98417°E /53.54139; 9.98417 |
| Public transit |  Baumwall (450 m)72 Elbphilharmonie (50 m)  Überseequartier (950 m) Am Kaiserkai (150 m) |
| Type | Concert hall |
| Capacity | 2,100 (Großer Saal)[2] |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 11 January 2017 |
| Construction cost | 866 million€ |
| Architect | Herzog & de Meuron |
| Website | |
| elbphilharmonie.de | |
TheElbphilharmonie (German pronunciation:[ˈɛlpfɪlhaʁmoˌniː]ⓘ; "Elbe Philharmonic Hall"), popularly nicknamedElphi,[3][4] is aconcert hall in theHafenCity quarter ofHamburg, Germany, on the Grasbrook peninsula of theElbe River.
The new construction resembles a hoisted sail, water wave, iceberg or quartz crystal resting on top of an old brick warehouse (Kaispeicher A [de], built in 1963) near the historicalSpeicherstadt. The project is the result of a private initiative by the architect and real estate developer Alexander Gérard and his wife Jana Marko,[5] an art historian, who commissioned the original design by the Swiss architecture firmHerzog & de Meuron,[6][7][2] who developed and promoted the project (since 2003 in cooperation with the Hamburg-based real estate developer and investor Dieter Becken) for 3.5 years until the City of Hamburg decided to develop the project by itself. It is the key project of the new Hafencity development and thetallest inhabited building in Hamburg, with a final height of 108 metres (354 ft).
The Elbphilharmonie was officially inaugurated with concerts of theNDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra and a light show on 11 January 2017.[8][9][10]
On 2 April 2007, the foundation stone was laid in the Kaispeicher A warehouse, in the presence of then FirstMayor of HamburgOle von Beust,Hochtief Construction AG CEO Henner Mahlstedt, the project coordinator for the City of Hamburg Hartmut Wegener (dismissed in 2008 for mismanagement of the project[11]),Hamburg Minister of CultureKarin von Welck and architectPierre de Meuron.
In 2007, the construction was scheduled to be finished by 2010 with an estimated cost of €241 million.[12][13] In November 2008, after the original contract was amended, the costs for the project were estimated at €450 million.[14] In August 2012, the costs were re-estimated to be over €500 million, which should also cover the increased cost for a strengthened roof. Construction work officially ended on 31 October 2016 at a cost of €866 million.[15]
The first public test concert at the Elbphilharmonie was held on 25 November 2016.[16][17] The official opening concert took place on 11 January 2017 with a performance by the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra under direction ofThomas Hengelbrock.[18] The first musical selection was "Pan" from Benjamin Britten'sSix Metamorphoses after Ovid.[18]
The project was criticized because of its cost and schedule overruns; construction was originally estimated to cost about €200 million, while the final cost was €870 million.[19][20] However, upon completion,Der Spiegel in a comparative analysis suggested that the overrun was relatively "modest" compared to some other international mega-projects.[21]
The group stage draw for theUEFA Euro 2024 was held here.
The building is designed as a cultural and residential complex.[2] The original 1966 brick façade of the Kaispeicher A, formerly a warehouse, was retained at the base of the building. On top of this a footprint-matching superstructure rests on its own foundation exhibiting a glassy exterior and a wavy roof line. About one thousand glass windows are curved.[22] The building has 26 floors with the first eight floors within the brick façade. It reaches its highest point with 108 metres (354 ft) at the western side.[2] The footprint of the building measures 120,000 square metres (1.3×10^6 sq ft). A curved escalator from the main entrance at the east side connects the ground floor with an observation deck, the Plaza, at the 8th floor, the top of the brick section. The Plaza is accessible by the public. It offers a view of Hamburg and theElbe. From the Plaza the foyer of the concert hall can be reached.[citation needed]
The Elbphilharmonie has three concert venues. The Great Concert Hall can accommodate 2,100 visitors whereby the performers are in the center of the hall surrounded by the audience in thevineyard style arrangement. Theacoustics were designed byYasuhisa Toyota who installed about 10,000 individually microshaped drywall plates to disperse sound waves.[22] The Great Concert Hall contains a pipe organ with 69 registers built byKlais Orgelbau. The Recital Hall is intended for the performance of recitals, chamber music and jazz concerts; it can hold an audience of 550 people.[2] In addition, there is the Kaistudio that allows for 170 visitors and is intended to serve educational activities.[22] The consultant for the scenography of the concert hall wasDucks Scéno.
The easternmost part of the building is rented byWestin which runs theWestin Hamburg Hotel. The hotel opened on 4 November 2016.[23] The hotel offers 250 rooms and 47 condominiums that are serviced. The hotel was designed by the architects ofHerzog & de Meuron to provide guests withport of Hamburg panoramas. It was constructed on an existing red-brick building that used to be a warehouse.[24]
Time placed Elbphilharmonie on its "World's 100 Greatest Places of 2018" list, with Kate Rockwood writing that the acoustics "steal the show" and that the hall's panels provide "a richer, better sound", quoting Toyota who said that the more time performers spend in the hall, "the better their ensemble becomes since they can hear themselves and each other more."[25]Forbes contributor Jens F. Laurson noted during an initial performance that "Everything musical (and otherwise) going on up and around the hall is beautifully audible down where I sat and, as per other audience member’s accounts, most everywhere else as well", that "[t]he hall is bright, very dry, direct, unforgiving. You can hear everything and immediately, for better and worse".[26] Philip Kennicott ofThe Washington Post wrote "The acoustics, designed by the renowned Japanese acoustician Yasuhisa Toyota, are a marvel of clarity, precision and cool objectivity".[27]
Some complaints about pooracoustics in the hall have been aired. After the grand opening on 11 January 2017, some musicians as well as conductors called the acoustics in the hall "appalling" and "terrible".[28] Further, in a 2019 performance of Mahler'sDas Lied von der Erde, audience members shouted, "can't hear you" at tenorJonas Kaufmann,[29] who himself later complained, "This hall does not help...".[30]
The nearest rail station isBaumwall onHamburg Metro line 3, about 450 metres (1,480 ft) away. The nearest bus stop is Am Kaiserkai, 150 metres (490 ft) away.
Elbphilharmonie is the name of a ferry pier, reachable from Hamburg'sSt. Pauli Piers.
| Preceding station | HADAG | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arningstraße towardsSt. Pauli (Landungsbrücken) | 72 | Terminus | ||
| St. Pauli (Landungsbrücken) Terminus | Elb-Hüpfer weekend service only | Willkomm-Höft (Wendel) One-way operation | ||
 Ferry services | ||||
| Speicherstadt towardSt. Pauli (Landungsbrücken) | Maritime Circle Line | HafenCity (Elbarkaden) One-way operation | ||
_--_2016_--_3171.jpg)
Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg | |
| Government and symbols | |
| History andculture | |
| Economy andtransport | |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Other | |
