Saalbau Essen is a concert venue in

Essen Essen () is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and Dortmund, as well as ...

, Germany, the home of the Essen Philharmonic. The original building was completed in 1902, and destroyed during World War II on 26 July 1943. It was rebuilt between 1949 and 1954 and completely renovated in 2003 and 2004. The Saalbau Essen is located a little bit south of the city center close to the

Aalto Theatre The Aalto Theatre () is a performing arts venue in Essen, Germany, and is home to the city's opera company Aalto-Musiktheater and the ballet company Aalto Ballett. The serve as the venue's orchestra. The theatre opened on 25 September 1988 with R ...

. Since the 2013/2014 season

Tomáš Netopil Tomáš Netopil (born 18 July 1975) is a Czech conductor. He conducted the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra in 2005 and made his debut with the London Philharmonic Orchestra in May 2006. In 2006, he also conducted at the Salzburg Festival and l'Orche ...

has been the

music director A music director, musical director or director of music is a person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert ...

of Essener Philharmonic. Also since 2013/2014 Hein Mulders has been the intendant of the Saalbau Essen.

History

The first concert venue at the same place, the so-called Stadtgartensaal, was opened in 1864. A new concert venue was built in 1901 at the same place – the first Saalbau.

Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; ; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer and conductor best known for his Tone poems (Strauss), tone poems and List of operas by Richard Strauss, operas. Considered a leading composer of the late Roman ...

conducted at the opening on 24 September 1904. The design of the building was influenced by the

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...

movement.

Gustav Mahler Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic music, Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and ...

conducted the world premiere of his 6th Symphony here in 1906 at the 42nd Tonkünstlerfestes (sound artist festival) of the Allgemeiner Deutscher Musikverein, followed by

Max Reger Johann Baptist Joseph Maximilian Reger (19 March 187311 May 1916) was a German composer, pianist, organist, conductor, and academic teacher. He worked as a concert pianist, a musical director at the Paulinerkirche, Leipzig, Leipzig University Chu ...

in 1913 with the world premiere of his Böcklin Suite. The Saalbau was destroyed in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

on 26 July 1943 together with the city center of Essen. After World War II, between 1949 and 1954, a modernized version was rebuilt. The most significant attribute of the building was the copper roof of the building. The white hall (Weiße Saal) got a unique ceramic wall from Charles Crodel. Alter Saalbau Essen, Kruppsaal um 1905.JPG, Kruppsaal around 1905 Saalbau, Essen.JPG, Saalbau from northeast Saalbau Essen Bühne.JPG, Stage in the Alfried-Krupp-Saal

Philharmonic today

Between 2002 and 2004, the Saalbau was refurbished at the cost of 72 million

Euro The euro (currency symbol, symbol: euro sign, €; ISO 4217, currency code: EUR) is the official currency of 20 of the Member state of the European Union, member states of the European Union. This group of states is officially known as the ...

. During this time, the Alfried-Krupp-Saal was extended at the back side. The building was reopened on 4 June 2004.

Entrance and lobby

Some parts of the building were converted to the style of the 1950s, for example the entrance and the lobby (Wandelhalle). At the main entrance are some small box offices, at the top are some historical candleholders. The box offices were used only for a short time, as they are too small and have no IT connection. The wardrobe side of the lobby is made from

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock consisting of carbonate minerals (most commonly calcite (CaCO3) or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite (CaMg(CO3)2) that have recrystallized under the influence of heat and pressure. It has a crystalline texture, and is ty ...

, the other sides are made from beton.

Alfried Krupp Hall

The Alfried Krupp Hall ( Alfried-Krupp-Saal) is the central and biggest venue. The design consists of bright wood paneling and warm colors. The red steel construction elements are references to the company

Krupp Friedrich Krupp AG Hoesch-Krupp (formerly Fried. Krupp AG and Friedrich Krupp GmbH), trade name, trading as Krupp, was the largest company in Europe at the beginning of the 20th century as well as Germany's premier weapons manufacturer dur ...

During an acoustic test it was observed that the steel elements should not be covered for acoustical reasons. Therefore, they are still undisguised and visible. The hall has places for 1906 people. The stage size can be adjusted to the size of the ensemble. The stage together with the parquet can be adjusted in height to the level of the balcony. Then the hall can be used as a ballroom or as a shareholder venue. The acoustic roof has a diameter of , weighs and can be adjusted in height. The venue has a height of , the second balcony starts at a height of . At the head end of the venue is the pipe organ from Kuhn.

RWE Pavilion

The installation of the new RWE Pavilion was sponsored by the energy provider RWE and is located between the two staircases of the Saalbau. It is an extension to the historical part of the building. It offers room for up to 400 people. Inside the room are two artworks of the artist Thomas Schütte.

Festival room

The festival room (Festsaal) offers place for up to 238 people. The wall paneling is made from mahogany and pear wood.

Color halls

The color halls (Bunte Säle) of the conference centre are above the Wandelhalle. There are yellow, green and white halls with a size between and . The white hall is the medium room. It consists of a ceramic wall from Charles Crodel dating to the 1950s. They are covered with motifs of European myths. The yellow hall has walls made from citron wood and silk prints by in 1954. The prints show the and the Golden Madonna of Essen. The green hall is covered by pear wood. The Bauhaus design was restored during the refurbishment in 2004.

Club rooms

There are three club rooms (Clubräume) ''

'', ''

'' and ''

'' for up to 44 people.

Kuhn organ

The

organ Organ and organs may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a group of tissues organized to serve a common function * Organ system, a collection of organs that function together to carry out specific functions within the body. Musical instruments ...

in the Alfried Krupp Hall was built by . The instrument has 62

organ stop An organ stop is a component of a pipe organ that admits pressurized air (known as ''wind'') to a set of organ pipes. Its name comes from the fact that stops can be used selectively by the organist; each can be "on" (admitting the passage of a ...

s (4502

organ pipe An organ pipe is a sound-producing element of the pipe organ that resonator, resonates at a specific Pitch (music), pitch when pressurized air (commonly referred to as ''wind'') is driven through it. Each pipe is tuned to a note of the musical ...

s) on three manuals and

pedal keyboard A pedalboard (also called a pedal keyboard, pedal clavier, or, with electronic instruments, a bass pedalboard) is a musical keyboard, keyboard played with the feet that is usually used to produce the low-pitched bass line of a piece of music. A p ...

. The instrument had a price of 1,2 million

. The instrument has a weight of roughly a size of . The largest pipe has a size of .

Critics

Critics have repeatedly voted the Essen Philharmonic as Germany's

Orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...

of the Year.

Public transport

The Essen Stadtbahn station Philharmonie is located near the Saalbau and named after it.

References

External links

*
Saalbau details
Essen Philharmonic {{Authority control Buildings and structures in Essen Concert halls in Germany Art Nouveau architecture in Germany 1902 establishments in Germany Music venues completed in 1902