rakvere
the Tonal Center
the Tonal Center content
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written description
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copies of the boards
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CD
the Tonal Center
1
written description
“I have discovered that it is enough when a single note is beautifully played. This one note, or a silent beat, or a moment of silence, comforts me. I work with very few elements - with one voice, two voices. I build with primitive materials - with the triad, with one specific tonality.” (Arvo Pärt)
the Tonal Center: The city of Rakvere has a long history. Today it is a quickly developing city. However, there has always been a lack of a ‘classic centre’ at Vabaduse Square and this absence needed to be addressed urgently. The plan “tHE Tonal Center” consists of a series of cultural buildings around a high quality public space.
ARVO PÄRT’S HALL: St Paul’s church, as an important work among Alar Kotli’s creations, is preserved as an individual landmark. The physical connection between the historic church and the new annex building (with Dance Hall, Café, Art Gallery etc.) is limited to minimum. According to best ceremonial and functional needs, a small transparent bridge connects the two buildings on the first floor only, leaving the ground floor free of obstacles to circumwalk the church. When implementing the Concert Hall into the existing church hall, the initial design intensions by Alar Kotli were restored and underlined as far as possible. New additions and alterations are exceptions, only allowed when strictly needed for optimal acoustics, multipurpose function of the hall and contemporary building physics.
VABADUSE SQUARE: Due to economic fluctuations, the building components of Vabaduse Square as proposed in the competition programme may frequently change in future, switch or move. In the scheme of “THE TONAL CENTER” a landscape like public park is located in the center of the Vabaduse Square. The new volumes for public buildings are located at the periphery of the square. Looking from the monuments at Vabaduse Park and at Vennaskalmistu Park the St Paul’s church is kept fully in sight and kept free of obstruction by the new development.
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCEPT: The target for this project is to design a CO2-neutral building complex that has low energy-use, low operation cost and a low-tech approach to technical infrastructure. In order to achieve CO2-neutrality, a wide range of measures are incorporated into the proposal. Passive measures make up a large part of the sustainable approach. As a general rule ‘natural’ solutions should proceed over complicated technical solutions. The simple and straight forward design of rectangular boxes with an efficient volume to surface ratio reduces the use of materials and allows optimized solar orientation. The facade of the annex building allows for deep penetration of natural light at all four sides of the building. A roof light provides additional daylight. A series of green roofs at annex building and new developments op Vabaduse Square maintain natural evaporation of rainwater and act as a heat buffer, thus reducing cooling loads. As much as possible the design should allow for natural drainage of rain water. This allows a ecological development of soil fauna which in return is crucial for the establishment of vegetation on the site. Also the reduction of sealed surfaces contributes positively to mitigating the urban heat island effect. Apart from the technical benefits the green roofs support a healthy working environment and visual quality. These roofs will be visible from the surrounding buildings, including the new public platform at St Paul’s church.
the Tonal Center
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A3 boards
1 site plan of the competition area sectons of the cityscape 2 floor plans of the church and the annex 3
sections elevations
4
illustration of Vabaduse Square
1:500 1:500 1:200
1:200
rakvere
the Tonal Center
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night view of the site
"I have discovered that it is enough when a single note is beautifully played. This one note, or a silent beat, or a moment of silence, comforts me. I work with very few elements - with one voice, two voices. I build with primitive materials - with the triad, with one specific tonality."
(Arvo Pärt)
the Tonal Center: The city of Rakvere has a long history. Today it is a quickly developing city.
However, there has ben a lack of a “classic centre” at Vabaduse Square and this absence needed to be addressed urgently. The plan “the Tonal Center” consists of a series of cultural buildings around a high quality public square.
north 1
connection
circulation scheme of different functions concept: independent and seperated paths for performers and audience/visitors
public space inside
public
open floor plan
performers facilities
north 2 sections of Urban Area
1:500
north 1
west
west
N site plan
1:500
north 2
the existing and new adaptions new removed / existing
rakvere
the Tonal Center
2
interior views of the annex
ground floor
first floor
ARVO PĂ„RT'S HALL: St Paul's church, as an important work among Alar Kotli's creations, is preserved as an individual landmark. The physical connection between the historic church and the new annex building (with Dance Hall, CafĂŠ, Art Gallery etc.) is limited to minimum. According to best ceremonial and functional needs, a small transparent bridge connects the two buildings on the first floor only, leaving the ground floor free of obstacles to circumwalk the church. When implementing the Concert Hall into the existing church hall, the initial design intensions by Alar Kotli were restored and underlined as far as possible. New additions and alterations are exceptions, only allowed when strictly needed for optimal acoustics, multipurpose function of the hall and contemporary building physics. floor plans 1:200
(optional)
underground floor
ground floor
first floor
section A
section B
rakvere
the Tonal Center
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sections 1:200 west and east view
west
section C moavable stage (optional) concert situation with acoustic curtain
east
section C regular situation
rakvere
the Tonal Center
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ground floor with view to cafe
church and annex
VABADUSE SQUARE: Due to economic fluctuations, the building components of Vabaduse Square as proposed in the competition programme may frequently change in future, switch or move. In the scheme of "the Tonal Center" a landscape like public park is located in the center of the Vabaduse Square. The new volumes for public buildings are located at the periphery of the square. Looking from the monuments at Vabaduse Park and at Vennaskalmistu Park the St Paul's church is kept fully in sight and kept free of obstruction by the new development.
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCEPT: The target for this project is to design a CO2-neutral building complex that has low energy-use, low operation cost and a low-tech approach to technical infrastructure. In order to achieve CO2-neutrality, a wide range of measures are incorporated into the proposal. Passive measures make up a large part of the sustainable approach. As a general rule ‘natural’ solutions should proceed over complicated technical solutions. The simple and straight forward design of rectangular boxes with an efficient volume to surface ratio reduces the use of materials and allows optimized solar orientation. The facade of the annex building allows for deep penetration of natural light at all four sides of the building. A roof light provides additional daylight. A series of green roofs at annex building and new developments op Vabaduse Square maintain natural evaporation of rainwater and act as a heat buffer, thus reducing cooling loads. As much as possible the design should allow for natural drainage of rain water. This allows a ecological development of soil fauna which in return is crucial for the establishment of vegetation on the site. Also the reduction of sealed surfaces contributes positively to mitigating the urban heat island effect. Apart from the technical benefits the green roofs support a healthy working environment and visual quality. These roofs will be visible from the surrounding buildings, including the new public platform at St Paul's church.
This layered principle showing the organisation and arrangement of the Vabaduse Square with the Annex of the existing church. potential oragnisation of Vabaduse Square
the Tonal Center CD
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