Soundscape Analysis, Tom Pupo

West 8 has created a wonderful compliment to the design of the New World Symphony by Frank Ghery.  Aside from the aesthetic move of spilling Ghery’s signature forms onto the landscape, there is careful control of the way the space enriches public life.  The space truly comes alive when people come from all around to enjoy a free evening performance.  Though it is a matter of personal preference whether you wish to enjoy a symphony performance inside the concert hall or informally outside, I do see many advantages to engaging the urban landscape for the viewing of any performance.

            Firstly, the open space allows for flexible seating.  People gather in different sized groups and come prepared with whatever they wish to make themselves comfortable.  Through the use of oversized blankets, lawn chairs, and even picnic baskets filled with dinner, these subtle additions make the experience more personal and intimate then sitting in upright concert hall seats.  It’s very interesting to see how each group of people create their own personal space even though they are sitting just a few feet away from another group. 

            On a larger scale, the park cuts its green spaces with bands of concrete forms that create smaller “bays” of space reminiscent of the sections in a concert hall.  Though these are more irregular and inconsistent than formal sections, it does give the impression that the space is smaller and more inhabitable then simply a large open field.  In my experience, I saw that some people preferred to sit on those pieces so they can set down food or drink without it spilling.  The landscape also slopes up to the center of the park to allow for easier viewing for those in the back.  This again is very typical for any performance space.  

The only gripe I had with the built environment was the effect of the city government forcing West 8 to add small stone barriers on the raised concrete seating platforms.  It is understandable that they wished to include these as a deterrent to homeless people sleeping in the park and other unwanted activity, but it does affect the flexibility of seating space.  I saw an older couple struggle to sit together between two of the stone dividers and I couldn’t help but feel pity on their discomfort.  It’s one of the design decisions that I believe did much more harm than good.

            Speaking on the side of technology, the space is complimented by exceptional sound and crystal clear video.  Being that my experience was with a symphony performance, I was impressed by the sound engineering as they only utilized the front speakers to mimic the true experience of only hearing a symphony from the front of the space.  I was informed that the other “surrounding” speakers are utilized in film viewings and performances of other genres of music.  This subtle move reinforces the proper experience for each performance it hosts.  I was further immersed into the music because the digital video being projected is editable via the utilization of multiple cameras and angles.  During the symphony performance, as a certain sound or section of the symphony was going to be highlighted in the song, they would switch the view from the overall view of the symphony down to a closer view of the specific instruments. This added another level of immersion than one would experience in a typical formal performance.

            All in all, the public space is the perfect balance of built form and digital immersion.  All carefully crafted to give the perfect experience for different events and performances. And even when no event is scheduled, the wall is still a beautiful display of moving forms of light and color as public art.  This is bringing culture, brief music education, and music enjoyment to the general public in a very easy and accessible way, and for me that is the most beautiful design gesture of all.