Conservatorium van Amsterdam, Amsterdam

The Conservatorium of Amsterdam can best be described as a college of music and a concert hall in one. The U-shaped configuration, next to the new Central Library of Amsterdam, is grouped around a courtyard which opens up toward the culture plaza to the west. The L-shaped office block which is yet to be realized screens off the sound from the railway line behind it.

The functional programme of the Conservatorium has three parts: the performing heart, consisting of 5 auditoriums for different kinds of music and the foyer-cum-canteen; the college building with all the classrooms; and the study building with the library, the lecture hall and the offices. The design follows this subdivision by organizing the vertical components in three clusters: from collective to individual, from extravert to introvert.

Due to the complex acoustic demands and the required high standard of sound insulation for the Conservatorium, the programme has been turned inside out. The engawa principle has been applied: a Japanese housing typology where all passageways are placed along the perimeter of the building. This way all corridors leading to the classrooms and study rooms serve as a sound- and thermal buffer while making the activities visible from the outside.