SFJAZZ Center by Mark Cavagnero Associates
San Francisco
Architects & Firms
Jazz clubs are known for their cozy intimacy, while concert halls convey gravitas. For the first permanent home of SFJAZZ in its 35-year history, organization founder and executive artistic director Randall Kline sought to bridge that dichotomy. 'You get wonderful experiences in 'found' houses that are not intended to be performance spaces, but we also wanted the focus of a concert hall,' he says.
Kline approached San Francisco'based Mark Cavagnero Associates in 2004 to figure out this combination; it would take almost a decade and an anonymous gift of $25 million to realize the $64 million project. Today, the only American building devoted to jazz fully embodies the genre. Like a bossa nova, the exterior features a rhythmic facade layered atop rigorous structure. And, just as a great performance brings listeners together, the 700-seat concert venue fosters community by arranging steeply raked seating around a thrust stage. 'When you're there, you don't see a rear wall'you see people's faces'and no one is more than 45 feet from the stage,' Cavagnero says of this auditorium. 'It highlights the collective experience.'
Inside the hall, board-formed-concrete walls possess an elegance. They are also covertly practical, by providing acoustic isolation and buttressing the delicate surrounding spaces. 'The concrete box carries all shear forces, so we could use lightweight steel construction with 12-inch-diameter columns,' Cavagnero explains. Consequently, glass walls create the perception that the sidewalk dissolves into the ground-floor lobby, and a similarly transparent 80-seat performance room makes its energy visible to passersby. SFJAZZ hoped to attract new audiences with these gestures.
It worked. According to Kline, the 36,500-square-foot building has met or exceeded all of its projected benchmarks for success. In the two years since the new cultural institution opened its doors, membership has nearly quadrupled, from 3,000 to 11,000. Performances have tripled to 300 a year, and newcomers make up about half of attendees at each show. 'The team nailed it,' says Kline. 'The theater is set up so that the audience can really be with the performers, and vice versa'and that transcendent moment can happen more often.'
PeopleClient/Owner: SFJAZZ Architect: Personnel in architect's firm who should receive special credit: Engineers: MEP/Lighting:WSP Group Theater Consulting/ Video Consulting:AUERBACH POLLOCK FRIEDLANDER Acoustics/ Audio Consulting:SIA-ACOUSTICS Architectural Lighting: Landscape: Façade Consulting: Specifications: Code Consulting: Vertical Transportation: Telecom: Security: Signage: General contractor: Photographer(s): Kyle Jeffers, 415-690-3586 CAD system, project management, or other software used: |
ProductsStructural system Exterior cladding Metal/glass curtain wall: Zetian Rainscreen: Swiss Pearl Other cladding unique to this project: Roofing Windows Shade: Nysan Green Screen Eco 500 Glazing Doors Special doors: Ambico Acoustic doors Hardware Closers: Dorma USA auto opener & Rixon Exit devices: PRL Glass System Pulls: PRL Glass System Other special hardware: SEDCO ADA push button Interior finishes Metal Mesh Ceiling: custom design and fabricated by Devco Engineering Inc. Flynn & Enslow metal mesh. Owens Corning QuiteR Rotary Duct Liner Suspension grid: ARMSTRONG – Grid Sys – Prelude XL 15/16” Cabinetwork and custom woodwork: Paints and stains: Wall coverings: Paneling: Wall and Ceiling acoustic panels: custom design white oak slat panel Plastic laminate: Solid surfacing: Floor and wall tile: Resilient flooring: Carpet: Raised flooring: Special interior finishes unique to this project: Furnishings Reception furniture: Fixed seating: Mobel Opus Chairs at Auditorium Chairs: Knoll, Emeco Tables: Knoll Upholstery: Bensen Lighting Downlights: Kurt Versen, Belfer Exterior: Bega, BK Dimming System or other lighting controls: Conveyance Plumbing Energy |
Looking for a reprint of this article?
From high-res PDFs to custom plaques, order your copy today!
