Three themes determined the design of the music campus: the effort to create a compact and communicative university building, to order, orient, and interconnect the campus through two new buildings, and to generate the largest possible green spaces on the campus.
The university's location in the middle of the site makes it a central element of the music campus. Together with the existing buildings and the planned district government building on the site's southern edge, it defines three open spaces with differing qualities. A public park enclosed by the existing and new buildings, where students and residents can meet. A smaller student campus between the new building and the current university building in the north, and an avenue that runs through the construction area along the park in the south that is part of the city's interdistrict pedestrian and bicycle network.
The district government building on Campusallee, proposed in the ideas section of the competition, frames the campus to the heterogeneous development in the south. Its canteen, a café, and a bakery occupy the street level and take advantage of the public space along the avenue and the park. Two high points at either end of the building respond to the overarching urban references: one joins the high-rise buildings along Kennedydamm, and a lower one in the southwest emphasizes the entrance to the music campus.
Three volumes order the conservatory's event level and study level and stand out above the square structure as cubes of varying heights. Through the precise placement of the volumes, the circulation and recreation zones are related to each other but can still be programmed individually. The event, teaching, and administrative areas of differing heights are situated in the volumes enabling the combination of all functions to form a very compact building that encourages people to meet.
The flowing foyer, cafeteria, and study areas dovetail effortlessly with the outdoor spaces around the university building. Connections between the event foyer, the working stage, and the public park with its seating steps lend themselves. The university foyer and forum face the existing university building to the north, while the cafeteria occupies the outdoor area between the buildings. Situated on the university roof are more intimate open-air lounging zones with a view over the campus.
The regular façade grid, in combination with the upward foldable floor-to-ceiling metal shutters, appears unpretentious. The wooden structure and the wooden interior fittings that appear behind them refine the appearance. It is intended that the interior takes on a workshop character that invites appropriation. The facades and roofs will be equipped with photovoltaic systems and partially greened.
Competition | 1st Prize, 2022 |
Client | BLB NRW and State capital Dusseldorf |
Planning started | 2023 |
Completion | 2029 |
Competition
Project Management: Simon Banakar
Team: Constanze Knoll, Steffen Rebehn, Bastian Gerner, Laura Leinert, Melinda Nasedy, Manuel Rugo
Planning and Realization
Project Coordination: Noah Grunwald
Project Management: Dominik Weigel
Team: Florian Hauß, Constanze Knoll, Valentin Spaeth, Johannes Drechsler, Simon Erik Lehmann
Urban planning: Machleidt Städtebau+Stadtplanung