Soundscape Park Analysis: A Play on Transparency , Priscilla Pagan

Just north of the very active Lincoln Road, the New World Symphony’s Soundscape Park, by architectural firm West 8, offers an escape from the hustle and bustle of the city. Soundscape Park is set apart from the rest because of the unique and transparent perspective it permits of Frank Gehry’s New World Symphony. This interesting perspective of transparency is best experienced during a WallCast event of the school’s orchestra performing.

Panoramic view

During one of these Wallcast events, usually at night, the functionality of the façade’s transparency becomes most clear as it allows Soundscape Park to become a theater for spectators to see the activities occurring inside. On one side of the facade, the glass curtain wall creates views of the interior as it puts Frank Gehry’s signature volumes used inside of the building and activities occurring around them on display. On the other half of the façade, a massive wall is used as a projection screen to display visual media of the orchestra performing. This play on transparency, that develops through the boundary of the façade, gives the Soundscape Park its main function: to invite pedestrian traffic from the city and provide a space for gathering and observing.

New World Symphony glass curtain wall portion of facade
displaying the interior of the building. 

The space on the park adjacent to the wall is the Soundscape Theater, where people can gather on the grass to watch what is being projected onto the wall. A steel structure, holding the speakers for amazing sound effects, hugs this space and creates a clear denotation as the best place the experience the Wallcast, with no obstruction and rich acoustics.

Vivid projection on the wall.

Soundscape Theater. Speakers hug the audience.

Hand sketched diagram showing adjacencies between the building's facade
and the Soundscape Park. The green highlights heavy pedestrian activity.

The space in the park adjacent to the glass curtain wall part of the façade is developed with intersecting paths that allow for circulation and benches that also allow people to sit and gather outside of the Soundscape Theater, as to not interrupt the spectators in the theater. 

Raised landscapes transform into benches for pedestrians
and visitors to sit.

The park provides facilitation of circulation in order to attract pedestrians* to come through the park and use it as a means of friendly pedestrian access, creating an interesting flow of movement throughout the park. With its many access points, it invites pedestrians coming from any direction. Once circulating through the park, the pedestrian experiences a quieter and less fast-paced environment within the grass lined concrete pathways. During a Wallcast event, these pedestrians lessen their pace as they observe what is happening around them, and sometimes even stop and sit on the benches or lay down on the grass to enjoy the performance.

The atmosphere in Soundscape Park also offers a sense of transparency to the city while simultaneously creating a boundary from it. The park is ornamented with trees and landscape familiar to Miami but uses them in a way that attracts your attention to the New World Symphony building by creating minimal obstruction. Even though there are tall palm trees throughout the landscape, they are placed just enough apart to allow for continuous views but just enough together to create a different atmosphere.

Pedestrian is used loosely as a term to describe all non-automobile forms of circulation that are associated with the use of legs, both human and animal.  I.e. Bicycles, skates, skateboards, etc.

Movement through the park.

Access point to enter the park from Washington Ave.

Cement pathways.

(Above) Bicyclist using the park and then decides to stop and lay on the grass to watch (below).

Intersecting pathways with active circulation.