Miralles Tagliabue EMBT, directed by Benedetta Tagliabue, has won the international competition to design the Shenzhen Conservatory of Music, one of the city's 10 new era cultural buildings. Characterized by the dialogue generated with its surroundings, the complex integrates music and art in nature with a proposal of organic and sustainable architecture.
Part of the 10 new cultural buildings of the new era of the city of Shenzhen, Shenzhen Ten Cultural Facilities of New Era promoted by the Municipal Government, among which are international studios such as Zaha Hadid, SANAA, Jean Nouvel, or Sou Fujimoto, the Conservatory of Music will become a new cultural landmark, hosting international and innovative community in an educational environment. Miralles Tagliabue EMBT, who has been strengthening its presence in China since 2010, designing the cities of the future such as Beijing, Shanghai, or Chengdu, will also get the chance to define the architecture of the Shenzhen New Ten.
The winning proposal for the music school by Miralles Tagliabue EMBT includes multiple buildings, integrated into the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) Campus, Shenzhen, creating a “unique educational model based on the relationship with nature and the belief in the ability of architecture to motivate creativity in the university community.” Based on a balanced dialogue with the natural environment, with water and green, the design strategy adopted highlights the environmental value of the site. Generating a new way of understanding “learning”, the conservatory enhances education and creativity through calmness and connection.
Fluid connections with nature blur the boundaries between interior and exterior, creating a complete fusion with the landscape. The theatre stands out as the protagonist and places the campus from distant perspectives, opening it up to the public and the city. Moreover, designed with the existing University Campus, the composition of the different blocks of the music complex provides continuity to the intervention.
The main axis of the complex articulates the position of the buildings for artistic performance: rehearsal room, concert hall, and theatre. On another hand, “the bright and green interior squares vertically link the learning spaces with those for musical interpretation, as if it were a living organism in which all parts are interconnected, in which education and creativity flow and share space”. The library, the students’ dorms, and the administration are also connected transversely to the complex.
The organic architecture takes on passive strategies for energy management, with a detailed study of the orientations and natural, and the usage of traditional and environmentally friendly materials, such as wood and ceramics. The facades are made from sustainable materials with compositions that resemble some musical scores.
International competition for Architectural Design of Shenzhen Conservatory of Music
Shenzhen, China 2020
- Client / Organizer: Engineering Design Management Centre of Bureau of Public Works of Shenzhen Municipality
- Co-organizer: Shenzhen Position Spatial Culture Development Co., Ltd.
- Architect:Benedetta Tagliabue - Miralles Tagliabue EMBT
- Project director:Nazaret Busto Rodríguez - Miralles Tagliabue EMBT
- Design team: Julia de Ory Mallavia, Gabrielle Rotelli, Dimitris Stefanakis, Jaime Ruíz Fernández, María Borrell Vilanova, Guillermo Sotelo Santos, Pietro Borzacca, Ana Maria Lazar.
- Managing team:Zhuoran Zhao, Daniel Rosselló, Arturo Mc Clean, Roger Pérez
- Area: 73.777 m2 plot area, 129.700 m2 building (floor area)
- Typology: Cultural facility: urban design, public spaces, architecture (campus master planning and individual building design)
- Program: Campus buildings: teaching complex, experimental practice studio, library, sports complex building, dining hall, administrative office, faculty dormitory, college system. Performance buildings: theatre (700-seats), Concert hall (500-seats), Rehearsal hall (200-seats). Basement: parking and equipment.
- Local Architects: HYP Arch Design – Zhao Kai, Hu Haitao, York Duan, Chen Min.
- Acoustic Engineering: Arup – Tateo Nakajima, Chris Mercer, Richard Bunn, Zoe Megins-Davies.
- Energetic Consultant:Transsolar Energietechnik GmbH
- Renders: Fancy
- Video:Undr – Xavi Parcerisas
- Model: Shenzhen QZY Models Design
