Bales Organ Recital Hall

A Case Study in Design Collaboration Among the Arts

by Steven A. Scannell

One of the most satisfying aspects of the Bales Organ Recital Hall's design is that it is such a successful collaboration among many different branches of the arts. Due to this collaborative effort, there are many who can proudly claim a measure of authorship in the completed building. The need for collaboration was apparent from the beginning and it has continued through to the end.

HTK Architects was selected to provide the design services for this project in April 1993. The University had already selected Robert F. Mahoney & Associates as acoustical consultant and Wolff & Associates as the organ builder. HTK's team consisted of Joe Terrill as principal-in-charge, Gary Karst as HTK's director of design and Steve Scannell as project manager. Terrill and Scannell are both KU alumni and were particularly excited about the opportunity to add to the proud history of their alma mater.

The process of design began with the collation of information about the Lied Center and entering it into computers as CAD files, for use as underlays and references during the initial design stages. Simultaneously, Bob Mahoney was working with James Higdon, professor of organ, and Hellmuth Wolff and James Louder of Wolff & Associates to develop sketches of several basic volumes which would be most conducive to desired acoustics, based upon existing successful spaces.

The entire design team met for several days to participate in design and review sessions. The team was many and varied in its membership, and included the following persons, all of whom contributed directly to the design of this project. Many others contributed at various points in the process.

The first activity of the design team was to verify the goals of the project. The primary goal was to create a world-class facility which would achieve the optimum acoustics for organ music. Mahoney and Louder presented their design criteria, goals, principles and concepts, specifically focusing the entire team on the unique needs of organ music and the Wolff instrument, in particular.

HTK then developed independent designs, based upon the information gathered during the program review. The group reviewed the design alternatives; good ideas were retained and refined, bad ideas were discarded. Eventually, an acceptable design was developed.

Numerous design challenges were resolved creatively. Supply air is delivered to the west galley ceiling by a mechanical duct, concealed within what appears to be a cross-over "choir loft", just north of the tall stained glass window in the south galley. Supply air is delivered into the hall through large open slots at the bottom of each sidewall, just above the concrete collonade beams. Return air travels through openings on the bottom of the stepped faces of the wood-framed ensemble platform at the lower front level of the hall. This arrangement both conceals the HVAC system, which is required to maintain a 70-degree and 50% humidity level within a very tight tolerance, and allows the air flow to be extremely slow, so that the sound of air movement will not be noticeable.

Another unique feature is the massive nature of the construction. To retain the low music frequencies, mass is needed to reflect and sustain them within the hall. The central ceiling, which is also the roof structure, consists of 10" thick precast concrete planks spanning custom-designed steel tube roof trusses. The side galleries have ceilings, in addition to roof structures, of 10" precast concrete planks, forming a massively-contained plenum space. The gallery walls are 18" thick reinforced and fully-grouted concrete masonry, with a brick cavity-wall veneer outside and a veneer plaster finish applied directly to the masonry on the inside. The upper walls are identical, but were reduced to 12" concrete masonry to reflect the less demanding acoustical conditions at that height.

The interior spaces and surface treatments were all designed for maximum acoustical effect. The angled front walls and ceiling serve to direct sound out into the audience. The pilasters, beams and columns of the side walls serve to diffuse the sound throughout the space. Over a dozen different sidewall treatments were developed on the computer to study this one aspect of the project. The design was felt to be aesthetically pleasing but more importantly, the varying sizes and shapes of the sidewall panels serve to diffuse the range of sound frequencies in richly divergent directions. The lower walls are 12" to 36" thick, cast-in-place concrete, with their faces angled 5 degrees to the building's centerline (10 degrees to each other) to avoid flutter echoes. Their curved profiles again enrich the diffusion of sound. The hard veneer plaster finish on all concrete and masonry surfaces adds to the reverberance of the space.

Other arts are incorporated in the building in several ways. The first and most obvious are the beautiful stained glass windows designed by Peter Thompson for the south galley. He also designed the pipe shades on the organ and the ornamental pipe railing which is behind the organist's bench, so that they also reflect the same design elements used in the windows. Along both side galleries, the wall areas are designed to be available to display artwork. Track lighting along the collonades provides illumination of these areas.

Construction of the project was challenging and demanded far more attention than a typical project of this size. Many details were mocked-up or discussed at length, to better test their acoustic impact or to determine how to make them work to best effect. Acoustical testing by Mahoney was done often, leading to several key adjustments which retained the hall's acoustical integrity. Louder and Wolff visited the site periodically and assisted in coordinating the construction of the building with the needs of the organ. Coordination andcommunication among all concerned with the project was a major challenge.

As the building neared completion and the organ installation began, Peter Thompson became very involved in details related to color and the interconnection of the organ and building. The organ builder and mechanical engineer helped coordinate the organ's mechanical and electrical needs, and focusing, of the lighting for best effect. The acoustician's tests revealed details which needed attention before the contractor's work would be completed, and which again helped retain the acoustical integrity of the space. The collaborative effort which began many months before continued to the end and, we believe, has resulted in achieving the design team's primary goal of creating a truly world-class facility for organ music.

Horst, Terrill, and Karst Architects

Joe Terrill, Principal-in-charge
Gary Karst, Director of Design
Steve Scannell, Project Manager

KU School of Fine Arts

Peter Thompson, Dean and Building Committee Chair
Stephen Anderson, Chairman, Department of Music and Dance
James Higdon, Professor and Director, Division of Organ and Church Music
Michael Bauer, Associate Professor of Organ and Church Music