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Royal Conservatory Of Music - Telus Centre for Performance & Learning (KPMB)
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tudararms
Guest
That facade feels reminiscent of the City Room at the Four Seasons. I love this project though. Wow, this alone in any major city would be exciting, but added to the Four Seasons, the Rom, AGO, the Gardiner, the National Ballet School, the Yonge Centre...and on and on. This truly is a cultural renaissance.
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building babel
Guest
Indeed. Has there ever been a more exciting or culturally rewarding time to be living in Toronto? Even without the new buildings there are more and more choices of arts events to enjoy.
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andreapalladio
Guest
I don't think so, no. Such a wealth of new performance spaces.
And that restaurant/party space doesn't look half bad either. The pr hacks and caterers in town must be delirious at all the new spaces available for events.
And that restaurant/party space doesn't look half bad either. The pr hacks and caterers in town must be delirious at all the new spaces available for events.
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tudararms
Guest
It makes me laugh when I hear some people claim that the arts are dead in the city because of the flight of Lord of the Rings. I would argue that the arts are thriving. There is so much that is excellent and inspiring happening here that Toronto audiences have become pretty discerning when it comes to laying out hundreds of dollars for a mediocre show, no matter how lavish.
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building babel
Guest
Raising the bar, qualitatively, is the best thing we can do for our city.
Politicians seeking re-election, and people with vested commercial interests, may try to whip us into a frenzy over their Expo or Olympics schemes every few years, but it is the day-to-day quality of life things that make the city great to live in and therefore enhance our prestige internationally. This doesn't just mean our performing and visual arts venues and our museums and galleries, but the reputations of our universities, colleges, hospitals and research facilities as well. It all contributes to a branding of the city that is quite independant from the kind of deliberately touristic "world class" initiatives we so often fall back on as examples of what must be done to save us and make the world love us.
Politicians seeking re-election, and people with vested commercial interests, may try to whip us into a frenzy over their Expo or Olympics schemes every few years, but it is the day-to-day quality of life things that make the city great to live in and therefore enhance our prestige internationally. This doesn't just mean our performing and visual arts venues and our museums and galleries, but the reputations of our universities, colleges, hospitals and research facilities as well. It all contributes to a branding of the city that is quite independant from the kind of deliberately touristic "world class" initiatives we so often fall back on as examples of what must be done to save us and make the world love us.
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spmarshall
Guest
A one picture update (Sept 21):
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Crazy Canuck07
Guest
I was walking on Philosopher's walk today, from the back it just looks like one big concrete slab.
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bizorky
Guest
It's not finished.
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rdaner
Guest
status?
How far along is this project? From the ROM's webcam it looks like the curtainwall is going up.
How far along is this project? From the ROM's webcam it looks like the curtainwall is going up.
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building babel
Guest
Re: status?
The roof is reinforced so it can have support an outdoor restaurant in the future. But, rather like the FSCPA and their rooftop terrace, it depends on getting the money to do it.
The roof is reinforced so it can have support an outdoor restaurant in the future. But, rather like the FSCPA and their rooftop terrace, it depends on getting the money to do it.
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building babel
Guest
>Re: status?
Yesterday afternoon, after 'Masques et bergamasques' at Walter Hall, I strolled up Philosopher's Walk. Most of the brickwork has been applied below the Galleria of the new building - which will have a great view down the Walk. The bricks are a range of several colours, matching the different hues of Mazzoleni Hall to the north. The effect is both subtle and distinctive.
Yesterday afternoon, after 'Masques et bergamasques' at Walter Hall, I strolled up Philosopher's Walk. Most of the brickwork has been applied below the Galleria of the new building - which will have a great view down the Walk. The bricks are a range of several colours, matching the different hues of Mazzoleni Hall to the north. The effect is both subtle and distinctive.
A
AlvinofDiaspar
Guest
Re: >Re: status?
From the Star, by Hume:
Music school revamp on a grand scale
Telus Centre, in the ROM's shadow, called Toronto's 'sleeper' cultural project
Dec. 4, 2006. 08:53 AM
CHRISTOPHER HUME
For the time being, the sound of music has been drowned out by the din of construction.
But when work is done, the Royal Conservatory of Music's Telus Centre will be a different place, a seamless blend of new and old, intimate yet public, a performance venue as well as a state-of-the-art educational facility.
Designed by Marianne McKenna of Toronto's acclaimed architectural firm Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg, it represents a huge step forward for the RCM, not to mention the city. The $110 million complex, which sits just west of the Royal Ontario Museum on Bloor St., is one of those projects  like the National Ballet School and the Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art  that takes as its starting point the idea of urbanism itself.
Of course, the conservatory has its needs  lots of them. Under its current, very ambitious administration, a traditional music school will be re-invented as an all-purpose cultural centre built for flexibility as much as learning. The 1,140-seat, horse-shoe-shaped Koerner Concert Hall, for example, was designed only after the architects had consulted with a number of local cultural institutions, everyone from the Toronto International Film Festival to Opera Atelier.
Another thing to remember is that organizations such as the RCM must now be financially self-sufficient. The days of public funding are grinding painfully to a halt, so the hall will be rented out, as will other spaces such as the magnificent three-storey theatre lobby. This glass-enclosed space faces east onto Philosopher's Walk and will provide exquisite views of the University of Toronto campus and the Royal Ontario Museum across the way. Though still under construction, it's clearly destined to be one of the great rooms of 21st-century Toronto.
At the same time, the former McMaster Hall, the impressive 1881 stone-and-brick heap that was once the home of the Toronto Baptist College, is also being fully renovated. Though McKenna has not attempted a historicist response to its Victorian exuberance, she has respected its materiality, dimensions and basic layout. The new and old now form two halves of a whole; they are engaged in a dialogue that ultimately extends to the entire neighbourhood and the city beyond.
Indeed, the attention to context constitutes the subtext to the project and makes it such an important addition to the city. On the other hand, the implications for Bloor St. are major; the north side of the block west of Avenue Rd. is already looking painfully shabby. With the advent of the new RCM and the Daniel Libeskind-redesigned ROM, something must be done.
It so happens that KPMB is also doing the One Bedford condo project across the road  a good sign. But much remains undone. Philosopher's Walk could also use help, at the least new paving and more trees.
Certainly, the RCM's new concert hall will mean more activity on Philosopher's Walk; one of its two entrances is there (the first is on Bloor) and the building serves as connection to the path from Bloor.
On the west side of McMaster, a second, smaller theatre, Siemens Hall, will provide rehearsal space. Situated in a glass-and-brick pavilion, it balances the site, and brings a contemporary face to the street.
Once the new complex opens, music students will be able to practise in large studios, many of which have windows and, remarkably, natural light. They will also have lounges, cafes and, if money permits, a rooftop restaurant on the Koerner concert hall.
"When you've been at it so long, you begin to doubt yourself," admits McKenna, who started the project in 1991. "There are so many layers of challenge. We're trying to create great rooms for music. We want it to be inclusive, a place that brings together learning and performing. There've been such spectacular cultural projects in Toronto, I think of this one as the sleeper."
She may be right about that. So far little attention has been paid to the conservatory, which remains in the shadow of the ROM next door. Even after it's completed, it will take time for people to wake up to the subtle beauty of the Telus Centre. But some things are worth waiting for.
AoD
From the Star, by Hume:
Music school revamp on a grand scale
Telus Centre, in the ROM's shadow, called Toronto's 'sleeper' cultural project
Dec. 4, 2006. 08:53 AM
CHRISTOPHER HUME
For the time being, the sound of music has been drowned out by the din of construction.
But when work is done, the Royal Conservatory of Music's Telus Centre will be a different place, a seamless blend of new and old, intimate yet public, a performance venue as well as a state-of-the-art educational facility.
Designed by Marianne McKenna of Toronto's acclaimed architectural firm Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg, it represents a huge step forward for the RCM, not to mention the city. The $110 million complex, which sits just west of the Royal Ontario Museum on Bloor St., is one of those projects  like the National Ballet School and the Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art  that takes as its starting point the idea of urbanism itself.
Of course, the conservatory has its needs  lots of them. Under its current, very ambitious administration, a traditional music school will be re-invented as an all-purpose cultural centre built for flexibility as much as learning. The 1,140-seat, horse-shoe-shaped Koerner Concert Hall, for example, was designed only after the architects had consulted with a number of local cultural institutions, everyone from the Toronto International Film Festival to Opera Atelier.
Another thing to remember is that organizations such as the RCM must now be financially self-sufficient. The days of public funding are grinding painfully to a halt, so the hall will be rented out, as will other spaces such as the magnificent three-storey theatre lobby. This glass-enclosed space faces east onto Philosopher's Walk and will provide exquisite views of the University of Toronto campus and the Royal Ontario Museum across the way. Though still under construction, it's clearly destined to be one of the great rooms of 21st-century Toronto.
At the same time, the former McMaster Hall, the impressive 1881 stone-and-brick heap that was once the home of the Toronto Baptist College, is also being fully renovated. Though McKenna has not attempted a historicist response to its Victorian exuberance, she has respected its materiality, dimensions and basic layout. The new and old now form two halves of a whole; they are engaged in a dialogue that ultimately extends to the entire neighbourhood and the city beyond.
Indeed, the attention to context constitutes the subtext to the project and makes it such an important addition to the city. On the other hand, the implications for Bloor St. are major; the north side of the block west of Avenue Rd. is already looking painfully shabby. With the advent of the new RCM and the Daniel Libeskind-redesigned ROM, something must be done.
It so happens that KPMB is also doing the One Bedford condo project across the road  a good sign. But much remains undone. Philosopher's Walk could also use help, at the least new paving and more trees.
Certainly, the RCM's new concert hall will mean more activity on Philosopher's Walk; one of its two entrances is there (the first is on Bloor) and the building serves as connection to the path from Bloor.
On the west side of McMaster, a second, smaller theatre, Siemens Hall, will provide rehearsal space. Situated in a glass-and-brick pavilion, it balances the site, and brings a contemporary face to the street.
Once the new complex opens, music students will be able to practise in large studios, many of which have windows and, remarkably, natural light. They will also have lounges, cafes and, if money permits, a rooftop restaurant on the Koerner concert hall.
"When you've been at it so long, you begin to doubt yourself," admits McKenna, who started the project in 1991. "There are so many layers of challenge. We're trying to create great rooms for music. We want it to be inclusive, a place that brings together learning and performing. There've been such spectacular cultural projects in Toronto, I think of this one as the sleeper."
She may be right about that. So far little attention has been paid to the conservatory, which remains in the shadow of the ROM next door. Even after it's completed, it will take time for people to wake up to the subtle beauty of the Telus Centre. But some things are worth waiting for.
AoD
B
building babel
Guest
Re: >Re: status?
It'll be nice if Opera Atelier finds a new home there - the acoustics at the Elgin are very poor.
Walter Hall, in the Faculty of Music building across Philosopher's Walk, has much better sound. Colin Ainsworth and Brett Polegato were in fine voice there yesterday. Refreshments were served at intermission, and I had the devil of a job racing the hordes of little old ladies down the hallway to get at the tea and shortbread biscuits.
It'll be nice if Opera Atelier finds a new home there - the acoustics at the Elgin are very poor.
Walter Hall, in the Faculty of Music building across Philosopher's Walk, has much better sound. Colin Ainsworth and Brett Polegato were in fine voice there yesterday. Refreshments were served at intermission, and I had the devil of a job racing the hordes of little old ladies down the hallway to get at the tea and shortbread biscuits.
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tudararms
Guest
Re: >Re: status?
I've never been to the Elgin Babel, I'm curious as to whether it was originally built as a legitimate theatre or as a cinema? I'm just wondering why the accoustics would be poor there?
I've never been to the Elgin Babel, I'm curious as to whether it was originally built as a legitimate theatre or as a cinema? I'm just wondering why the accoustics would be poor there?