切薩姆音樂學院擴建工程

切薩姆音樂學院是全球最大的專業音樂學校且是英國唯一的音樂學院，學校位于英格蘭北部的曼徹斯特。校內古老建筑可以追溯到1421年。切薩姆音樂學校的圖書館是英國最古老的公共圖書館，也因為卡爾?馬克思1845年在這里學習過而愈加著名。老圖書館在新時代已經不能滿足學校需求，因此stephenson:ISA STUDIO被委托為學校的心臟建筑進行擴建。

新建筑的音樂和教學環境力為全英最先進，盡力為學生創造出一個展示自己才華的獨特舞臺。建筑本身也將成為代表曼切斯特教育和文化的標示建筑。

Architect: Stephenson:ISA STUDIO
Client: Chetham’s School of Music
Photographer: Daniel Hopkinson

Chetham’s School of Music is the largest world class Music School in the UK and is unique to the region. The existing medieval building contains the first public library in England, which boats amongst its’ scholars Karl Marx and is an architectural gem.  It is currently not readily accessible to the public and one of the main design principles was to create a dialogue between the existing buildings, the new school and its wider context.

場地在一個高差超過6米的坡上，建筑師利用這一個特點創造出建筑平面布局的多樣性，在下層安置音樂和教學課堂，以及相關服務空間。一座高架橋從學校南部探入建筑內部，方便南部師生日常訪問。建筑的造型靈感部分來自五線譜，鋼琴，部分來自周圍的古老建筑。

位于學校西南角的這所建筑面臨了許多挑戰，因為用地和面積的限制，建筑上部分便做出懸挑增加面積。因為地處城市中心，對噪聲的限制要求很高，建筑內部的所有聲樂教學室和表演場所都采用了獨立的結構。大型音樂廳則擁有完全獨立且被隔離的內部結構。

The musical heart of the School is in a building which is no longer fit for purpose and the School has outgrown its current building provision for teaching and learning through its increased success and profile.

Our brief was to create a unique contemporary new building for the musical and academic teaching facilities, providing a state-of-the-art environment which will be a fitting platform for the students.  A public auditorium will allow Chetham’s students to display their talents to the public. The building itself will provide an iconic opportunity for the educational and cultural standing of Manchester to consolidate its position on the international scene.

Architectural Response

The site varies in elevation by approximately 6m from the bottom of Walkers Croft to Victoria Station Approach.  We propose to use the height difference as a datum to reinforce the diversity of the buildings’ programme.  The performance spaces and their associated service spaces are located below the datum whilst the music and academic classroom accommodation is placed above the datum.  The main public entrance, foyer and ensemble rooms are located on the datum itself.  A new bridge link allows daily secure access for the staff and pupils from the existing school campus to the south.

The building is conceived as a carved solid, rising from the south adjacent the grade 1 medieval building, to a fulcrum above the main entrance to the north.  The form of the building reflects the fluid forms of musical instruments and the island nature of the site. The elevations are expressed horizontally and are influenced by the musical stave and pianola.

Many challenges of the site have influenced the form and structure of the building.  The river Irk runs in a culvert along the route of Walkers Croft and cuts across the site at the south western corner requiring the upper floors of the music school to cantilever substantially at this point.  Due to the city centre location and the sensitive acoustic requirements of the music teaching and performance spaces most of the internal rooms are independent floating boxes.  The Concert Hall has a complete independent internal structure floating on springs.

This is a project that sits at the core of the ambitions of the Manchester city region, which is looking to preserve and enhance its unique assets for the long-term benefit of its people.