On September 4th 2015, the National Forum of Music’s musical ensembles: NFM Symphony Orchestra, NFM Leopoldinum Chamber Orchestra, NFM Choir and the Wrocław Baroque Orchestra inaugurated NFM’s (one of the most modern concert hall centres in Europe) activities with a concert of pieces by Polish composers. The building stands near Freedom Square in Wrocław and will become the home of the International Wratislavia Cantans Festival and the Witold Lutosławski Philharmonic. The main office of the two well-respected institutions which merged in 2014 is meant to be open and inclusive, and to become (as the name suggests) a true forum and a space for various concerts, festivals, cultural gatherings and events.
The NFM building was designed by Kuryłowicz & Associates Architecture Studio, selected through an international architectural contest in 2005. The author of the project, the late Stefan Kuryłowicz, held a doctorate in the field of concert hall architecture. Along with his colleagues, he designed the form of the grand edifice with six floors and three underground levels. The National Forum of Music is one of Europe's biggest concert hall centres, including a recording studio, conference and office space, a library, rehearsal rooms, dressing rooms, cloak rooms, cafés, and bookstores for music lovers.
The architects from Kuryłowicz & Associates gave the building a rather unobtrusive form. The reasoning behind this decision lies in its close proximity to the historical neighbourhood of the Old Town and architectural context of the Wrocław city centre's diverse styles. The building's elevation, marked with thin incisions with the horizontal lines of glass windows, is covered with a special material called Prodema which consists of many layers of veneer glued together with resin. The concert hall’s colour and texture resembles that of the soundbox of a musical instrument. The warm brown of the elevation of the NMF fits in well with the walls of the historical architecture of Wrocław.
The interior of the building is no less detailed. The foyer is particularly impressive, covered with black and white Corian – a solid, resistant acrylic material, with a distinctively smooth surface. The bold contrast of the black and white surfaces of the foyer (diagonal lines of the white balconies and stairs compared to the black walls in the background) will no doubt bring about the impression of piano keys for many music lovers.
We’re not afraid of the black and white foyer, because it accentuates the building's nature. When we dress for special occasions, we also wear black and white. We wanted to create something sublime, something that would get across to everyone, yet wouldn’t have any ornamentation as it wouldn’t fit the neo-modernist style the building was created in.
– said Ewa Kuryłowicz, one of the authors of the project.
The elevation from the side of the old moat was given additional detailing made of golden metal sheets.
