Canadian music hub by Allied Works Architects 'an immersion of structure and sound'

– Brad Cloepfil
A giant international hub for music and sound technology has opened in Calgary, Canada to house the country’s National Music Centre (NMC).
Studio Bell, designed by Brad Cloepfil of Allied Works Architecture, is a vast street-crossing construction located in Calgary’s East Village.
The 160,000sq ft (15,000sq m) building rises in nine interlocking towers clad in glazed terra cotta. It includes five floors of exhibition space showcasing over 2,000 artefacts and musical instruments intended to educate and inspire visitors about Canadian music.
Other features include recording facilities, workshops, classrooms, event spaces, a Canadian Music Hall of Fame and a 300-seat performance hall with movable acoustic walls. The latter overlooks the lobby from the second floor and serves as the building’s programmatic and structural centre.
To the west of the structure, a skybridge spans like a gateway over Calgary’s 4th Avenue and connects the building with the existing King Edward Hotel – one of the birthplaces of jazz in the city.
Each of Studio Bell’s exhibition spaces is designed to produce an experience more aligned with a music festival than a traditional museum. Galleries are envisioned as spaces for performance, where music is heard and experienced, and each can be customised to suit the needs of its specific collection.
“Entering from the street, the building is filled with the reverberation of voices and music, drawing visitors up into five floors of performance, exhibit, and collections spaces,” said Cloepfil. “The apertures at each gallery create a threshold of sound, introducing the content and programs of the particular exhibition. The spaces between are filled with silence, with views that frame the city and landscape beyond.”
The architect described the design as “an immersion in sound and structure” that acts as an instrument in its own right, with a form that merges, parts and intertwines in the same way as “light, gravity and acoustics.”
NMC President and CEO Andrew Mosker said: “The design for Studio Bell has been a truly collaborative process, and it has been thrilling to see our vision come to life. The NMC will become one of Canada’s most significant national institutions, inspiring new generations of musicians and music lovers and catalysing the redevelopment Calgary’s East Village as a core urban district.”
Construction on the CAN$191m (US$145m, €131m, £112m) project began in 2013, with Haley Sharpe Design, Kasian Architecture and CANA Construction also involved. The NMC has raised over CAN$130m (US$98.7m, €89m, £76m) through a capital funding campaign.
Allied Works Studio Bell Calgary Canada National Music Centre architecture design






Plans revealed for CA$890m CalgaryNEXT sports complex
Snøhetta reveal designs for Calgary Library, Canada
Architect appointed for Calgary's East Village


James Corner Field Operations creates Highline for London

Esbjerg’s landmark maritime center, designed by WERK Arkitekter and Snøhetta, opens to the public

SEVEN to open world’s first indoor Discovery Adventures centres in Saudi Arabia

Fun and fear drive new Universal attraction concepts for Texas and Las Vegas

Voelker Gray Design creates 10-acre hot springs wellness haven for Atlanta

AIDarchitecten create healing spa for Antwerp's Botanic Sanctuary

Hollaway Studio's Seahive would bring blue health to South-East England

SEVEN to invest US$13bn in developing entertainment destinations across Saudi Arabia

World Spa’s expansive 50,000sq ft urban bathhouse and wellness club opens in Brooklyn

Floating Salmon Eye visitor attraction by Kvorning Design highlights sustainable aquaculture

White Arkitekter's Wood Hotel in Skellefteå Swedish Lapland is climate positive and made from local timber

Nohlab's 'Everything' installation among Noor Riyadh festival highlights

Bob Iger's return to Disney sparks major restructuring focused on creativity and storytelling

Therme Group plans US$200m urban wellbeing resort in South Korea

Digital art installation in Nanjing helps the public keep an eye on exoplanets

First glimpses revealed of flagship Blue Zones Centre in Miami

Warner Bros. and Infinite Reality launch metaverse experiences for live sports fans

Storyland Studios' Nigeria's film city project will break ground in Q1 2023

Canyon Ranch preps for major expansion with new destinations in Austin, Fort Worth and Houston

WilkinsonEyre-designed Battersea Power Station development opens as leisure district following £9bn redevelopment

Healthy cities conference to discuss diversity and inclusivity in urban planning and design

Foster and Partners reveal design for sustainable marine life centre on the Red Sea

Anaheim's US$4bn ocV!BE project approved by planners

Construction marches ahead for Saudi giga-projects Amaala and The Red Sea

HBG Design behind Michigan’s six-storey Aquadome inspired by the sun’s path across the sky

Seventh International Museum Construction Congress to be held in Norway this year

The 'world's most anticipated museum' to finally open this year

Nike's Serena Williams Building, designed by Skylab, follows the concept of flow

Saudi Arabia's Neom mega-development to include 100-mile long 'horizontal skyscraper city'
