Sinfonia Varsovia Centrum – a new cultural venue for Warsaw

Buro Happold is providing structural and building services engineering for Sinfonia Varsovia Centrum – a new cultural venue in Warsaw, centred around the Sinfonia Varsovia Orchestra.

Sinfonia Varsovia Centrum complex includes five historical buildings, a new concert hall with a surrounding lattice frame and a garden.

The comprehensive conceptual design covering the entire Sinfonia Varsovia Centrum complex, including five historical buildings, a new concert hall with a surrounding lattice frame and a garden have now been approved. The cultural venue design expands on the functionalities of the individual buildings, the concept for the garden, as well as the architectural form of the frame which has evolved to become more translucent.

One of Warsaw’s cultural icons, Sinfonia Varsovia plays, educates the city’s residents musically, and is part of the city’s cultural landscape. Improving the conditions of its operation in its new home at Grochowska Street and the previously announced construction and commissioning of a modern concert hall designed by Thomas Pucher is one of the most important, and most interesting challenges for our City­ ­– says Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz, President of the Capital City of Warsaw.

We are happy that architect Thomas Pucher has taken into account comments from Warsaw residents when working on the conceptual design of the Sinfonia Varsovia Centrum. However, he did this in such a way so as not to lose sight of the original vision which has delighted the jury of the international architectural competition in 2010 – comments Janusz Marynowski, director of the Sinfonia Varsovia Orchestra. Suspended 3 metres above the ground, the frame surrounding the will now be translucent, so the main historical building will be visible from Grochowska Street – Marynowski assures us.

Not just a concert hall

The new complex not only houses the largest concert hall venue in Poland, it also includes space for young artists (Sinfonia Varsovia Academy, artists’ residences, rehearsal halls), a recording studio, conference hall and educational facilities for various age groups. There will also be space simply to relax, including a café combined with a music store, a restaurant, a garden which merges with the Obwodu Praga AK Park and a terrace situated 20 metres above street level, which will allow visitors to enjoy a panoramic view of the city.

Warsaw follows the example of other European cities which have located important cultural institutions in areas covered by urban regeneration programmes.
_{Michał Olszewski, deputy president of the Capital City of Warsaw.}

Sinfonia Varsovia Centrum is a flagship project in the Programme for the Revival of the Praga District. It is of enormous importance to the development of Warsaw on the eastern bank of the Vistula river. By adopting this approach, the capital follows the example of other European cities which have located important cultural institutions in areas covered by urban regeneration programmes. Music is an excellent platform to build and strengthen community ties. I hope that Sinfonia Varsovia Centrum will be an important place for the local community, a space in which residents will feel at home, of which they will be proud. I am convinced this will be a place of attraction for tourists and artists from all over the world – says Michał Olszewski, Deputy President of the Capital City of Warsaw.

From an engineering point of view Sinfonia Varsovia is a great challenge, and this is why it is a very interesting project for us
_{Zbigniew Czajewski, group director at Buro Happold}

Zbigniew Czajewski, Group Director at Buro Happold comments “From an engineering point of view Sinfonia Varsovia is a great challenge, and this is why it is a very interesting cultural venue project for us. The concept of the concert hall combining a “shoe box” solution and a “vineyard” seating arrangement with unique balconies is exceptional, but also the very characteristic frame surrounding the whole property is unusual. We are looking forward to seeing the project progress  and eventually attending a concert in a brand new venue in Warsaw.”

Construction work is scheduled to begin on the cultural venue at the end of 2018. With completion of the first stage and opening of the three buildings facing Grochowska Street expected in spring 2020. Completion of stage two and the opening of the concert hall is scheduled to take place two years later in spring 2022.

The project is financed from the budget of the Capital City of Warsaw. In 2010 the construction cost was estimated at approximately PLN 460 million. This value will be revised upon completion of the design work. The city budget has earmarked an amount of ca. PLN 280 million.