With Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in attendance, Frank Gehry presented the model for the future National Center for Social Action Through Music building in Lara state. The project is Gehry’s second in Latin America, following the recently inaugurated Biomuseo in Panamá.
To be located in Barquisimeto, Venezuela’s fourth most populated city, the National Center for Social Action Through Music forms part of the National Network of Youth and Children’s Orchestras and Choirs of Venezuela, more commonly known as “El Sistema.” Founded in 1975 by orchestra director José Antonio Abreu, El Sistema is now funded by the government and provides musical training and education for children from impoverished backgrounds. The Adjkm-designed Simon Bolivar Complex for Social Action is also part of El Sistema.
Learn more about the project after the break.
.@NicolasMaduro y Dudamel revisaron junto al arquitecto Frank Gehry proyecto d la sede de orquestas juveniles en Lara pic.twitter.com/dbKJDtmfOq
— Jacqueline Faria (@JacquelinePSUV) December 23, 2014 Translation of Tweet: @NicolasMaduro and Dudamel look over the project for the Youth Orchestra Headquarters in Lara with architect Frank Gehry – tweeted by Jacqueline Faría, the Communication and Information Minister
In 2012, Gehry was invited to head the design project by Gustavo Dudamel, the current Music Director of both the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela and the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
The National Center for Social Action Through Music will have two concert halls with the capacity for 3,700 seats, and construction is set to begin in 2016. Nicolás Maduro has said that the Venezuelan government “will inject the necessary resources for the project,” reported Spanish newspaper El País.
Frank Gehry arq. Canadiense reconocido mundialmente por las innovadoras y peculiares formas de edificios que diseña pic.twitter.com/MujFvD3joa
— Jacqueline Faria (@JacquelinePSUV) December 23, 2014 Translation of Tweet: Frank Gehry, a Canadian architect known globally for his innovative and unique building designs
News via El País, Fundación Musical Simón Bolívar
