OFFICE 351

The Vltava Philharmonic Hall is conceived as a cultural landmark for the new neighbourhood that is taking shape on one of Prague’s largest brownfield sites, which formerly housed a freight station and shipping facilities along the Vltava river in the north of the city. A perfect cube, with sides measuring 72m, the building stands prominently on the riverfront. Its minimal footprint leaves ample space for a public square and a surrounding park. The simple geometrical form encloses a variety of stacked performance spaces: a black box on the ground floor, a shoebox-type chamber music hall in the middle, and the main vineyard-style concert hall on the third level, in the heart of the building. This stacking is made visible through the large urban windows. Arranged around the central concert halls, along the perimeter of the cube, are foyers with bars, restaurants and other public amenities, as well as technical spaces and offices. The facade is animated by circular perforations that allude to the punched cards (book music) that specify the notes to be played on a mechanical instrument – or, in this case, the building itself, which ‘plays’ to its surroundings.