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Old Posted May 3, 2009, 12:31 PM
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Philadelphia: Curtis Institute of Music

from upenn library:



Leopold Stokowski conducting a rehearsal of the Curtis Orchestra in the Common Room of the Curtis Institute. 1925-26 school year


from Venturi, Scott, Brown website:

images of Locust block, before and after here:

http://www.vsba.com/pdfs/CurtisInsti...festHall01.pdf

Our design responds to the scale and character of the streetscape, integrating the facades of two historic townhouses, while providing institutional identity. A four-story façade on Locust Street is clad in brownstone with widows grouped to recall the rhythm of townhouses along the street. Large piano nobile windows express the 30’ high rehearsal hall, and a projected bay window highlights the entry and internal circulation system.

Student residences are located in a tower set as far back as possible from Locust Street and clad in a beige-gray brick; this renders it minimally visible from Locust Street and apparently a separate building.

A roof terrace above the four-story block provides outdoor space for students, faculty, and staff.

We worked closely with near neighbors, community groups, and other stakeholders to build consensus for the design and secure approval from the Philadelphia Historical Commission. The project has targeted LEED Silver certification.




from Curtis website

April 27, 2009

THE CURTIS INSTITUTE OF MUSIC BREAKS GROUND
ON NEW FACILITY: Lenfest Hall


The Curtis Institute of Music announces the groundbreaking for its new facility on the 1600 block of Locust Street. Curtis's vision: to be the finest music conservatory in the world and the first choice for students seeking performance careers.

Lenfest Hall: building is designed by renowned Philadelphia architects Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates. Scheduled to open in 2011, the facility addresses Curtis's long-established needs for additional space, including an appropriate orchestra rehearsal room and greatly expanded teaching and practice facilities to relieve excessive pressures on the historic main building at 1726 Locust Street. The building will also allow Curtis to provide, for the first time, student residences and dining facilities for the entire Curtis community.

The new facility will be a stunning addition to the campus that allows us to maintain our priceless musical traditions while positioning us for the future.

Situated one block from the current facilities at 1718, 1720, and 1726 Locust Street, Lenfest Hall will create a city campus, completing a "Curtis corridor" along Locust Street from Rittenhouse Square to the Avenue of the Arts, where the Curtis Symphony Orchestra and Curtis Opera Theatre perform regularly at the Kimmel Center.

"The design of Lenfest Hall pays tribute to the historic block of 1600 Locust Street while providing a state-of-the-art educational setting for the talented young musicians that come to Curtis," said Daniel McCoubrey, principal architect for Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates. "We have preserved the façades of two nineteenth-century townhouses and at the same time created inviting community spaces, ample teaching and practice rooms, and student housing within the new building."

One of the world's leading music schools, Curtis provides full-tuition scholarships to all of its 162 students, ensuring that admissions are based solely on artistic promise.

Building details
First Floor: the Commons
One of the building's main social centers, the Commons will include a dining hall and a comfortable lounge looking out onto historic St. Mark's Church and its gardens.

Kiosks with electronic screens near the building's two entrances keep students up-to-date on lesson schedules and other activities taking place across Curtis's campus.

Separate elevator banks provide access to the private student residences, as well as to the Orchestra Rehearsal Hall, classrooms, studios, and practice rooms.

Second Floor: Orchestra Rehearsal Hall and Teaching Studios
A 3,500-square-foot, acoustically designed rehearsal hall will accommodate a full orchestra for the largest-scale core repertoire, enhancing Curtis's ability to attract world-renowned visiting conductors and guest artists.
Surrounding the rehearsal hall are teaching studios for double bass, percussion, and harp and an atrium lounge, as well as student lockers and storage space for all instruments.

Third Floor: Rehearsal and Practice Studios
A wide range of practice rooms and studios for individual instruction, practice, and chamber music rehearsals enable Curtis to meet the practice needs of every student, whether living in the residence hall or off-campus.
The third floor also features audio and video recording studios.

Fourth Floor: Rehearsal and Practice Studios and Orchestra Library
As on the third floor, practice rooms and studios for individual instruction, practice, and chamber music rehearsals will be available.

The fourth floor will also be home to the Orchestra Library, which stores all performance materials, scores, and parts used for orchestra rehearsals and concerts. Relocation of the Orchestra Library from the Rock Resource Center at 1720 Locust Street will bring Curtis's orchestral activities under one roof, increasing efficiency and will free up valuable library space in the Rock Resource Center.

Fifth Floor: Student Social Center and Terrace
A social center overlooking Locust Street includes a media/entertainment room and an outdoor terrace. Set back forty-five feet from Locust Street, the terrace will be landscaped by Longwood Gardens, the renowned horticultural center in Kennett Square, Pa. The terrace perimeter will also include a "green roof" environment.

The student residences begin on this floor, with a designated suite for a senior resident advisor. Other fifth-floor amenities include laundry facilities and a small kitchen.

Sixth–Ninth Floors: Student Residences
Residences will accommodate 88 students (approximately half of the student body). Each suite will provide four bedrooms, two bathrooms, and common/social space.

Architectural History: On the Square



The Curtis Institute of Music is located on Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square and occupies what were formerly four private homes—the George W. Childs Drexel mansion at 1726 Locust Street, the Edward A. Sibley house at 235 South 18th Street, the Theodore H. Cramp house at 1720 Locust Street, and the building at 1718 Locust Street.

Last edited by Swinefeld; Nov 27, 2009 at 3:13 PM.
     
     
  #2  
Old Posted May 3, 2009, 12:47 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bucks native View Post
from upenn library:


April 27, 2009

THE CURTIS INSTITUTE OF MUSIC BREAKS GROUND
ON NEW FACILITY: Lenfest Hall


Architectural History: On the Square



The Curtis Institute of Music is located on Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square and occupies what were formerly four private homes—the George W. Childs Drexel mansion at 1726 Locust Street, the Edward A. Sibley house at 235 South 18th Street, the Theodore H. Cramp house at 1720 Locust Street, and the building at 1718 Locust Street.
Wow. I never would've thought those were previously private residences. They really are a testiment to the long gone era of high society Rittenhouse Square when homes were predominant.
     
     
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Old Posted May 4, 2009, 6:51 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Johnland View Post
Wow. I never would've thought those were previously private residences. They really are a testiment to the long gone era of high society Rittenhouse Square when homes were predominant.
Not sure it's too different today, almost all the buildings around the square are private residences...albeit multi-family dwellings. All that really means is you still have the same elite upper crust locating to the square, just a lot more of them. But at their prices it's still a very small social circle that can afford to live on the Square and the Rittenhouse high society scene--though it may have lost some if it's famed grandeur--is still alive and quite well.
     
     
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Old Posted May 9, 2009, 11:46 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Londonee View Post
Not sure it's too different today, almost all the buildings around the square are private residences...albeit multi-family dwellings. All that really means is you still have the same elite upper crust locating to the square, just a lot more of them. But at their prices it's still a very small social circle that can afford to live on the Square and the Rittenhouse high society scene--though it may have lost some if it's famed grandeur--is still alive and quite well.
Cinema Paradiso
Edited by Lauren McCutcheon
Philadelphia Magazine



Photography by Trevor Dixon

On a penthouse roof deck high above Rittenhouse Square, a group of friends — including the deck’s designer — gets together for a casual (but nonetheless incredible) alfresco movie night.
     
     
  #5  
Old Posted May 31, 2009, 1:09 PM
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mansions on Locust comprising Curtis (between Bouvier and and the square):



photo credit: dpka.com


Casimir Hall (at Bouvier) houses organ:

In 1937 Aeolian-Skinner installed as Op. 958 a new console, the Positiv division and the Pedal Posaune unit. By 1940 the 13-year old Aeolian was apparantly already showing its age. Aeolian-Skinner was selected by Mrs. Bok to rebuild and enlarge the instrument as their Op. 1022, with work completed in 1941. The console was rebuilt by Aeolian-Skinner in 1960 as Op. 958-A. The organ was rebuilt by Moller as their Op. R-897 in 1974 with a new console and additions; there was additional work later on as Op. M-10720. The instrument now has 106 ranks. A new console was ordered from Turner Organs in 1999.

Last edited by bucks native; Aug 30, 2009 at 12:57 PM.
     
     
  #6  
Old Posted Jun 4, 2009, 11:08 AM
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Locust Club Demolition

Next week, the Locust Club building demolition is set to commence. The adjoining brownstone facades have now been fully stabilized for restoration as part of the Curtis Institute project.
     
     
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Old Posted Jun 6, 2009, 11:13 AM
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photo credits: crusader at flickr

Curtis students add to street life.
     
     
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Old Posted Jul 12, 2009, 9:48 AM
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photo credits; Curtis website: http://www.curtis.edu




In March the main activity at the site included bracing the party-walls and stabilizing the historic façades at 1610 and 1618 Locust Street. Underpinning was installed at these two locations while the necessary steel was fabricated and delivered. The doors and windows were removed and wood blocking was built to support the framework. Above: A team of contractors lifts a steel beam into place during the construction of massive support towers which will become more visible from the street during bulk demolition.





The construction of three steel towers to brace the party-walls and stabilize the historic facades at 1610 and 1618 Locust Street concluded in May. With permits to commence bulk demolition secure, the project is ahead of schedule. Meanwhile, the project team puts the finishing touches on the design documents, making aesthetic decisions on furniture, fixtures, and equipment.






A view from above shows the top of steel towers that support the party-wall and historic façade at 1610 Locust Street. Bulk demolition--a major milestone in the project--commenced in early June. Piece by piece, heavy machinery removes the interiors of the two historic properties and levels the old Locust Club during an eight-week process.

August '09: Bulk excavation

October '09: Tower crane assembly

December '09: Basement foundation

January '10: Concrete superstructure

June '10: Façade restoration

August '10: Enclosure of building

January '11: Interior work

April '11: Complete fit-out and finishings

August '11: Move-in

September '11: More music
     
     
  #9  
Old Posted Jul 20, 2009, 11:39 PM
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Current Demolition progress

July 17, 2009:

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Old Posted Aug 30, 2009, 12:48 PM
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August 2009 update:



photo credit: curtis.edu

Demolition of the Locust Club and the buildings behind the historic façades of the 1610 and 1618 townhouses is complete (shown above, looking across the 1600 block toward Locust Street and St. Mark's Church). The next phase of the project includes underpinning, shoring, bulk excavation, and soil retention. That work will proceed through October.


Curtis Ranked Most Selective by U.S. News and World Report
Best Colleges 2010

According to the annual college survey conducted by U.S. News and World Report, Curtis has the lowest acceptance rate of any school studied in the survey.



photo credit: johnbhedges
     
     
  #11  
Old Posted Nov 8, 2009, 4:55 PM
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Tower Crane Erected

The Tower Crane is being erected this weekend...originally scheduled for last weekend, delayed due to inability to close streets due to police resources tied up with World Series happenings....

Next weekend, weather permitting, the concrete mat foundation is being poured....non-stop deliveries totalling 150 truckloads of concrete...

Pretty impressive hole that can be viewed from Latimer St....especially with the amount of facade supporting bracing steel....

Project is on schedule!!!
     
     
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Old Posted Nov 8, 2009, 5:11 PM
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any pictures thoroughbread?
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Old Posted Nov 15, 2009, 6:23 PM
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Here is the crane in question



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Old Posted Nov 16, 2009, 2:15 AM
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how high is this suppose to get? is there a rendering? also thanks for the pics parkway. i almost forgot why on go to this site.
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Old Posted Dec 4, 2009, 4:41 AM
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Not much, but here's a quick pic from today.

     
     
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Old Posted Dec 4, 2009, 2:34 PM
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That white stuff looks like styrofoam...
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Old Posted Dec 4, 2009, 5:20 PM
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I noticed that they're keeping the front wall of the old buildings intact and butressed. Does the new building incorporate the facade in the same way that 10 Rittenhouse kept that stone facade for the new Barnies?


EDIT: Nevermind. I just read the earlier posts :-)
     
     
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Old Posted Dec 22, 2009, 2:52 AM
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Two new views from today...



     
     
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Old Posted Dec 22, 2009, 2:50 PM
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apology then comment

I don't usually like to clog up these threads with personal comments, but I feel compelled to say how proud and pleased I am to live in a city where effort is made to restore and maintain the beautiful, architecturally interesting building fronts when designing new, modern spaces. I believe this costs a lot extra, and I also believe it is far more complicated than bulldozing everything down and building from scratch. However, if Philadelphia doesn't want to end up looking like Houston or Dallas then these efforts must be encouraged and supported. So to the folks at Curtis, and the folks at 10 Rittenhouse, I say thank you for a fine piece of work. To the rest of you, thank you for enduring my opinion.
     
     
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Old Posted Jan 12, 2010, 8:14 PM
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from today. Going up

     
     
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