The Philharmonic Concert Hall

20th Century Architecture History

Peter Corrigan – Hans Scharoun

“Discuss the Berlin Philharmonic, does it support the issue that the personal agenda is political?”



The Philharmonic is considered to be Scharoun’s most celebrated work throughout his career. As an architect living through the war years and the Nazi era, he had channelled his experiences through architecture creating a statement of what was to come in the future of human civilization. He would express his ideas and visions through a series of dreamlike watercolours, which he had prepared for a time after the Nazis, a time of peace. These proposals would later come to life through buildings such as the Berlin Philharmonic.

The Philharmonic when designed would have generated quite a statement due to its irregularity in design. It steered away from the traditional orthogonal, rectilinear designs of the 20th century modernism and tended more towards organic architecture. He is referring to the balance and harmony between nature and architecture. For the Berlin Philharmonic, the built form addresses this notion of harmony through the music that is created within. Making a bold statement through this piece of work, that there would be a time of peace, where music can be heard and shared. Addressing the notion of democracy and freedom, there is a deep connection to organic architecture and its ideals of harmonious relationships.

The angle and curvy facades create a soft aesthetic relationship to the surrounding landscape. The facades are out of yellow hued metal materials maintain an earthy balance of landscape, colour and form. However the main conceptual idea is focused on the notion of orchestrating the music in the center and projecting it outward throughout the main auditorium. The seating arrangement is in a circular format through a series of different levels that was positioned in order to maximise acoustic performance. There was no hierarchy in the design, providing equal sound...