Manuel de Falla Auditorium

Description

A tribute to composer Manuel de Falla, the Auditorium stands on the hill of the Alhambra. One of the main aspects that influenced its design was its integration into the landscape. The Manuel de Falla Centre is the first major building to be built on the hill of the Alhambra since Pedro de Machuca built the Palace of Charles V in the palace complex of the Alhambra in 1527. The almost monastic austerity, the perfection of the architectural concept and the economic restraint in the means used bear witness to the memory of Manuel de Falla. It was designed as a cluster of forms emerging from the interior spaces, as is the case in the Alhambra. The result is an elongated, irregularly shaped building that barely rises above the treetops and is largely buried to take advantage of the slope of the hill. Its exterior combines large areas of beautiful pink brick and irregular roofs clad in patina tiles with a minimum of concrete. All major trees in the garden, which now serves as the entrance to the building, were preserved.The Auditorium has one of the best music halls in the world. It has a seating capacity of 1,311 spectators and its acoustics were designed by Lothar Cremer, who also worked on the Berliner Philharmonie concert hall. In addition, the Auditorium has a study area, conference rooms and music rooms for courses and rehearsals. The stage divides the hall into two unequal spaces, one with a capacity for 897 spectators and the other for 414 spectators. The two areas are separated by sliding elements, forming two halls with their own architectural character and a capacity suitable for the normal conditions of use in Granada. The union of the two provides a large concert hall with a seating capacity of 1,311. This internal structure is naturally reflected in the external division of the building into two unequal volumes, between which runs a pedestrian street leading from the Paseo de los Mártires street to the Mirador de Melisendra, a vantage point with panoramic views of the plain of Granada and the Sierra Nevada mountain range. The rest of the spaces were arranged in a descending progression flanking the concert hall to create a series of linking elements between the scale of the spaces and the small architectural volumes of the Antequeruela neighbourhood.(Description provided by the architects)