ATATURK CULTURAL CENTER
PRESIDENTIAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
CONCERT HALL
DESIGN
- Semra Uygur
- Özcan Uygur
PROJECT TEAM
- Necati Seren | Güliz Erkan
- Metin Cihan Yıldırım | Ayça Tüzmen
- Kamer Tomris Çetin | Esra Gömceli
- Deniz Karabacak | Oya Caymaz
- Bozkurt Yurdakul | Umut Toker
- Sandro Capadona | Onur Ergen
- Ayhan Abanozcu | Alper Derinboğaz
- Gökhan Kınayoğlu | Emre Şavural
- Ecren Başbuğ | Ramazan Avcı
- Aslı Kaya | Evrim Özlem Kale
- Özcan Kaygısız | Eser Köken
- Ebru Can | Rabia Uçay
- Kemal Yurtgezen | İrem Erdinç
- Mustafa Kır | Deniz Uygur
Ankara has a new landmark with an international appeal; The Presidential Symphony Concert Hall which lies in the heart of the city , right in the middle of the axis going between the historic Ankara Castle and Anıtkabir (mosuleum of Atatürk). The cutting- edge building with its focus on culture aims to prove an asset to both local and global music scene while being the product and instigator of interaction and exchange among citizens.
In May 1992, national architectural project competition for the building of ACC (Atatürk
Cultural
Center) Presidential Symphony Orchestra Concert Hall was announced. The proposed project,
submitted by
Semra Uygur and Özcan Uygur, was chosen over forty-five other entries. Design principal of the
first
prize winner project of the Presidential Symphony Orchestra Concert Hall started as a urban
unification
process in order to merge the divisions of area designated as Atatürk Cultural Center in 1981.
The music
center complex is embedded in the relatively abandoned city-landscape within a field which is
the only
gap looking through Anıtkabir from Ataturk Boulevard which functions as the main avenue since
the first
urban plans of Ankara.
The winning project became prominent among other competition entries with its spatial quailty of
being
timeless by providing a compelling social urban relation. By spotting that the site is embedded
in the
relatively abandoned city-landscape within a field which is the only gap looking through
Anıtkabir and
the historic Ankara City castle from Atatürk Boulevard, the main principal of the design
constitutes
itself. The decision was to avoid interrupting the views of Ankara’s symbolic Anıtkabir
mausoleum
dedicated to modern Turkey’s founder and first president, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. The design
strategy
prioritizes vistas of both monuments. According to the jury report, the building reveals a
symbolic
architecture that will not wear out over time, rather than a design language that can be valid
for a
certain period of time. The configuration of the complex is so designed that the triangular
prism foyer
joins the dialogue between Ankara castle and Anıtkabir. Thus, a depiction of the “Before and
After
Republic” intensified through a cultural house. This foyer is designed as an “urban room” by
being
transparent and publicly accessible. The colossal egg-shaped dome designed as Symphony Orchetsra
Hall
with the capacity of 2000 audience, and the sphere dome designed as Champher Orchestra Hall with
the
capacity of 500 audience are popping out of this vaulted triangular prism foyer. Following the
vineyard
hall architecture concept, in The Symphony Orchesta Hall musicians are placed in the middle,
while
audiences rise in a steep incline to surround the stage. To ensure the perfect acoustic
qualities,
German Professor W. Fasold together with the Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics
collaborated with
architects.
Concrete shells of these two halls’ domes are constructed by unique pneumatic formworks. This is
a
technique used for a few times in the world, and this was the first time used in Turkey. Foyer
and the
concert halls are sunken and located on the lowest level of the site. The symbolical approach is
depicted by the distinct and dynamic Euclidian forms and their poetic compositions. Foyer and
the
concert halls are located on the lowest level of the site and a reflection pool surrounded them.
The
pool mirrors the sky, the city and the halls around reflecting the different weather conditions
and
redefines the atmosphere every single day. On both sides of this rectangular pool two identical
buildings are positioned diagonally as if popping out of the earth enigmatizing and embracing
the
concert halls. The complex creates a crater lake imprint and otherworldly impact. In these
upward-tilted
buildings administrative and educational units and professional studios are found. Guest’s
experience is
a clear incentive which eschews a singular roof or façade to convey a sculptural structure
composed of
seemingly independent forms and the balance of curvilinear and sharp-edged buildings.
The new building complex constitutes an indoor area of 62,547 square meters. In addition to the
Turkish
Presidential Symphony Orchestra, it will host the Ankara State Polyphonic Choir, Ankara Turkic
World
Music Ensemble, Ankara State Turkish Folk Music Choir, Ankara State Classical Turkish Music
Choir and
State Folk Dances Ensemble.
Dating from 1992, the extraordinary construction story of The Presidential Symphony Concert Hall
complex
is eventually concluded. The foundation was laid in 1997, and the construction endured until the
year of
2014 because of insufficient allowance. In the year of 2017 construction process is launched
again and
in the year of 2020 the complex was almost done. During this 29 years period since the
competition, 5
Presidents, 10 Prime Ministers, and 20 different Ministers of Culture have taken charge in.
On 3rd of December 2020, Presidential Symphony Orchestra inaugurated this new concert hall with
a gala
event. Because of the Covid-19 pandemic the concert hall was closed for a while.
Located in the heart of the city, The Presidential Symphony Concert Hall Complex stands as an
architectural landmark and can be seen by all and sundry because of its significant positioning
and
striking image. The design is an unintentional statement on a futuristic aesthetic which looks
back at
the time of conceptualization from the very future.
- Location
- Competition
- Project
- Construction
- Structural Eng. Project
- Mechanical Eng. Project
- Electrical Eng. Project
- Landscape Project
- Consultants
- Client
- Construction Area
- Photos
- Altındağ, Ankara, Turkey
- 1992 - 1st Prize
- 1993 - 2012
- 1997 - 2021
- Danyal Kubin, Prota Engineering
- Bahri Türkmen, Bahri Türkmen Engineering
- Kemal Ovacık, Ovacık Engineering
- Can Kubin, Promim
- Prof.Dr. Wolfgang Fasold (Fraunhofer Instituts Für Bauphysik) (Acoustics)
- Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism
- 62.547m2
- Cemal Emden, Deniz Uygur
