Janáček Philharmonic in New Concert Halls in Poland There are preparations for a new concert hall with a setting for one of the most significant orchestras in the Czech Republic: the Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava. Where else should we seek inspiration but in neighbouring Poland, a model destination with unique concert halls built in recent years? At the beginning of the new millennium, construction of these concert halls was responsible for a true boom in architecture. The concert hall in Ostrava will be built near the House of Culture (Dům kultury) of the city of Ostrava. It will house the Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava, which now operates out of the House of Culture. Built between 1956-1961 in the modern classicist style, it does not correspond with current demands for a modern concert venue any more. In connection to the planned construction of the concert hall in Ostrava, the Janáček Philharmonic and its management representation conducted an important tour of five concert halls in Poland from November 14–18, 2018. The Janáček Philharmonic (conducted by successful Estonian conductor Risto Joosta) promoted exclusively Czech music.

The concert hall in Szczecin

A hundred musicians (including a thirteen member brass “gang”) played on the best state-of-the-art stages. The tour started in the concert hall of Filharmonia Świętokrzyska im. Oskara Kolberga in Kielce, designed for an audience of 515 people on Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2018. The following day, the philharmonic played in one of the best and largest concert halls built in Europe in recent years: in Narodowe Forum Muzyki im. Witolda Lutosławskiego in Wroclaw, situated in the centre of the city, near the Opera House in the Square of Freedom. The building of the forum consists of a main hall, seating 1,800 visitors, and

The concert hall in Szczecin

three smaller halls. Then the orchestra went to Gorzow Wielkopolski, whose Gorzowska filharmonia im. Stanisława Moniuszki has a hall, built in 2011, which can seat nearly 600 people and enjoys studio-quality acoustics. On Saturday, the orchestra played in Koszaliń  in a new hall built for Filharmonia Koszalińska in 2013, with a capacity of 500 seats. On the last day of the tour, the Janáček Philharmonic played in the concert hall of Filharmonia im. Mieczysława Karłowicza w Szczecinie designed for a thousand listeners. The new building of the philharmonic won the Prize Miese van der Rohe 2015 and first prize in the Eurobuild Awards 2014 competition as the Best Project in Architecture of the year.

The concert hall in Szczecin

POSITIV ǀ 4/2018 53