A Sublime Concert Hall

- Cultural and Congress Centre, Zlín, Czech Republic -

When designing a concert hall or interior design in general, glasfiber reinforced concrete might not be the first material that comes to mind. Well, think again!

Given that there is no single method to design a concert hall, -since it will always be conditional on several factors like room acoustic parameters, sound strength, reverberation time, clarity, etc- materials play a huge part in concert hall acoustics. The same materials used in a space with good acoustics could worsen the sound if arranged in a different way. In general, however, hard, reflective materials are ideal for concert hall acoustics. Considering that reflection and reverberation are imperative to make the sound richer.

Hereby, we would like to present the Congress Centre in Zlín, in the Czech Republic. Permanent residence for the Bohuslav Martinu Philharmonic Orchestra. Designed by the internationally known architects Eva Jiřičná & from Petr Vágner from A.I Design, s.r.o., transforming ordinary interior design into an elegant display of luxury.

With the support from sound engineers, acoustic consultants and polycon. Engineering, architecture, and interior design were perfectly fused to create an effective configuration for the impressive concert hall. Additionally, the space was maximized by utilizing lighting effects and material characteristics.

The team polycon meticulously designed every single complex panel to provide perfect surfaces that enhanced the acoustics, including the walls on balconies and ceiling panels.

The elaborate drawing of each element was key for the 3D designs of the acoustic panels and ceilings. After that basis, the models were manufactured, and the machining equipment gradually shaped the models into the desired shapes. A polyurethane matrix was then produced and removed from each model, for the purpose to obtaining the perfect inversed shape. Subsequently, the matrices were placed on the mold bottom and framed.

Next step taken was to spray the molds of the shaped elements with glass fiber reinforced concrete mixture. The finished products were removed from the molds and stored for curing. After curing, the shaped acoustic panels were tested for possible sound scattering, from the widest range of frequencies to the feeblest sound absorption.

To meet the visual requirements of the architects, every tested element was given a final coating after curing.