The Glazing On The Cake

The Elbphilharmonie is what one would call the icing on the cake, or  rather, glazing on the cake! And what better way to describe it than this, as it sits majestically on top of the erstwhile warehouse Kaispeicher in the HafenCity part of Hamburg? The new glass building perched atop is redefining the city's skyline with its wave-like design, changing avatars as it captures the reflections of the sky, the water and the landscape.

Designed by the Swiss architectural firm Herzog & De Meron, the Elbphilharmonie is inspired by the ancient Delphi theatre, sports stadia and tents. More than a decade of unstinted dedication has been put in by the architects to piece together this work of art. Elphi, as it is fondly called, is the tallest inhabited building in Hamburg. At 360 ft, it houses two concert halls, a hotel and residential apartments. Between the glass building and the warehouse is a public viewing space called the Plaza, where visitors can take in panoramic views of the city even without a ticket.

The most striking feature of the Elbphilharmonie is without a doubt, the glass facade. 1,000 curved window panels have been customized to reflect the hues of the sky, the rays of the sun, the water and the city, transforming the concert hall into a gigantic crystal. The last of the panels were attached to the rolling rooftop on January 31st 2014, marking the completion of the facade and the exterior of the Elphi. The glass facades of the apartments and concert foyers are a sight to behold, resembling huge tuning forks with their boldly convex form.

January 11th, 2017, will go down in history as the date on which music will resonate through The Grand Hall of the Elbphilharmonie, for the first time ever. Nearly 10000 sheets of gypsum fibre panels cover the surface of the walls and the ceilings in The Grand Hall. Rising magnificently like a tent, the Hall is a harmony of architectural and acoustic excellence, and can seat 2100 people at a time. The vineyard-like seating arrangement is a seamless setting that breaks down any barrier between the audience and the musicians.   

The Elbphilharmonie is a symphony of old-world charm and modernism. What once used to be a storehouse of cocoa, tea and tobacco, the  Kaispeicher now lets the monumental glass building rest on it. Architecture is not always about starting something phenomenal from out of nowhere; sometimes, it is about embracing the old and making it timeless.