Luxembourg ' s New Concert Hall by Christian de Portzamparc A new home for the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg is one of a number of cultural projects underway as the city prepares itself for its second stint as European Capital of Culture . In 1995 , the city of Luxembourg was named European Capital of Culture . It will again wear that mantle in 2007 . The Luxembourg government and private industry have taken the title very seriously with a 450 million investment in the cultural infrastructure that has projected the small country ( population 448 , 300 ) onto the international cultural stage . There are no fewer than 10 projects either recently completed or underway . Among the most anticipated are the Grand Duke Jean Museum of Modern Art , designed by I . M . Pei , due to open in 2006 , and the nearby Salle de Concerts Grande - Duchesse Joshine - Charlotte , designed by Christian de Portzamparc , scheduled to open in 2005 . The concert hall , new home of the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg , is sited at the heart of the triangular Place de lurope , as part of a new master plan designed by Ricardo Bofill in 1996 . In 1997 , Portzamparc won an international competition to design the estimated 107 . 7 million , 20 , 000 - square - meter ( 215 , 000 sf ) hall , which includes : the main auditorium that can expand from 1 , 226 to 1 , 506 seats ; a 302 - seat chamber music hall ; and a specialized , 120 - seat hall for electro - acoustic music . In Luxembourg , on the Kirchberg Plateau , at the center of the Place de l urope , the Concert Hall now stands as a rotunda , like a baptistery . It is an autonomous object in the middle of this vast triangle , like a jewel set in a case formed by the surrounding buildings . A foyer - gallery encircles the central kernel of the hall . The facade of this peripheral foyer is a vast filigree of 823 fine columns mathematically organized in curves . Neither opaque nor transparent , the rhythms affirm the outer shape of the hall and offer a wealth of varying views deep into the building , depending on where you stand . Seen from inside , the play of light is very particular . The observer discovers a continuous dialogue of transparencies . In fact , at the beginning when I visited the site , I thought I might install a forest ring between the interior and the exterior a symbol of the separation of two different worlds . That of music offers a strong sensory experience , marked by a frontier in the form of an improbable curtain of light . In the inner part of the foyer - gallery , a series of sculptural towers mark the entrances of the hall . A long thin footbridge , winding around the central cluster of towers , allows circulation within the site upper levels and gives access to the boxes of the main auditorium . Inside the concert hall , the virtues of a Shakespearean theatre are combined with the proven acoustics of hoe - box concert halls . The freestanding towers with their boxes give an impression of depth that seems to ilate the space . The impression is no longer that of a closed hall but of a gathering place amongst tall structures , thronged with people . In order to give autonomy to each tower , they are set at differing angles , which might seem haphazard , but in fact assures that each listener has good views of the stage and orchestra . Each tower has four floors of boxes with every listener in a front row seat . I wanted the public to populate the walls of the space , surrounding the music . The volume of the chamber - music hall is very considered : it seems to be sheltered under a coiled leaf or to be part of a cone growing out of the cluster of columns and softly unfolding . The inside of the hall is defined by two reflecting elements , disposed so as to avoid an over concentration of sound , one being concave and the other convex . Another reflector above the orchestra zone completes this acoustic device . The unusual curving axis of the hall , seeking to unite the orchestra and its public , is clearly marked and maintains the integration between the two . Design Architect : Christian de PortzamparcAssociate Architect : Christian Bauer & AssociInterior Acoustician : XU AcoustiqueExterior / Environmental Acoustician : AVEL AcoustiqueStage Design : Changement Vue , Michel FayetConsultants : Reinforced concrete / metal structure : Gehl Jacoby et AssociGlass fade / Metal columns : Gehl Jacoby et Associ Setec TpiHVAC / sanitary planning : S & E Consult ; Setec ? uipementsElectrical : Felgen & AssociTechnical : SecoluxSet design : VeritasAerodynamics : DMI Force TechnologyHealth & Safety : Sageri Paris - based Christian de Portzamparc first major work was a water tower in Marne - la - Vall ( 1971 - 1979 ) ; to date , he is the only Frenchman to receive the Pritzker Prize ( 1994 ) , and this year he was awarded the 2004 Grand Prix de lrbanisme . His first major work was a water tower in Marne - la - Vall ( 1971 - 1979 ) , and he made an international name for himself in 1984 , when he won the competition to design the Citde la Musique at La Villette ( Paris ) , completed in 1995 . Recent projects include : apartment block Nexus World in Fukuoka , Japan ; Palais des Congr extension , Paris ; LVMH Tower , New York ; and the Law Courts , Grasse en Provence . Current works in progress : the headquarters of publishing group Le Monde , Paris ( late 2004 ) ; Museum and Library , Rennes , France ( 1993 - 2005 ) ; Block one in Rem Koolhaas master plan for Almere , The Netherlands ( 2006 ) ; SociGale tower , La D ? ense , Paris ; and Cidade da Musica , Rio de Janeiro ( 2003 - 2007 ) . Portzamparc is also at work on a residential tower in New York and the master plan of Beijing Port Area . http : / / www . archnewsnow . com / features / Feature 153 . htm