Casals Forum

The building ensemble next to the rapid-transit station of Kronberg is surrounded by the green of Viktoriapark. The steep slope and the challenge to bring the new buildings into unison with the scale of the surrounding buildings lead to a topographic design approach. The chamber music hall and the hotel will have a base made of natural stone that emerges from the terrain, whereas the music academy is pushed into the slope and appears merely as a stone wall. The stone walls create an exciting alternation of open and enclosed exterior spaces on the way from the train station forecourt to the interior of the quarter. The hotel at the train station marks the beginning of the ensemble with a finely articulated wooden facade. The chamber music hall at the apex of the site concludes the ensemble with a far cantilevering roof. A large interstice made of glass separates the concert hall's roof from its stone foundation, the tiers embedded in it. The glass interstice lets the surrounding landscape become part of the clad-in-wood music hall and emanates its warm light to the outside.