Contemporary Music Centre Evreux

Haute Normandie, Northern France

Design: Hérault Arnod Architectes

Concert Hall for actual and contemporary music in Evreux

This Contemporary Music Centre (SMAC) is a new kind of musical complex, consisting of two

auditoriums of very different kinds, linked by a public space called the deck, running from one

side of the building to the other. It is designed on the principle that, instead of being mere

consumers of entertainment, people can construct their own evening, which requires a distinctive

spatial layout.

The site of the building is a corner of the Bel Ebat fairground, on the edge of the historic town

centre. The difficulty lies in the size relation between the new building, essentially small and

non-central, and the fairground, a huge empty esplanade. One of the challenges of the

architecture is to give the building a clarity, an identity and a naturalness that local and national

visitors can appreciate, but also to create a synergy with the fairground activities – fetes, flea

markets, circuses, etc.

To resist and exist in relation to the vast expanse of the fairground, the structure is tall and dense,

sculptural and autonomous, its identity in contrast with the surrounding buildings. To give the

volume its height, the main concert hall is on the first floor, overhanging the entrance on the

northern side. Because the plot stands at the intersection of two streets, the structure curves

around the hall in an enveloping movement, its upper part extended by the facade of the main

auditorium.
For acoustic reasons, the concert rooms and recording studios are separate concrete boxes. As far

as possible, the annexes and service premises are arranged around the outside to form a sound

buffer. The whole structure is enveloped in a light metal skin, a double wall or over-roof that acts

as an additional acoustic feature. From the outside, the volume is dense, composed of triangular

facets, some of them made of polished stainless steel that reflects the surrounding trees. It is

imbued with a dual internal motion, the movement of the deck that crosses it and the movement

of the roof which rises gradually to envelop the main auditorium.

Part inside, part outside, the deck performs multiple functions. It is the unifying factor out of

which the architecture develops. It operates like an immense interior/exterior hall stretching from

the street to the esplanade. On this side, it opens southwards to become a wide porch, an urban

theatre that acts both as a terrace for the club bar and restaurant, and as a stage for outdoor

concerts or shows. The deck is a piece of architecture in its own right, embedded within the

building. To reinforce its interiority and create a warm atmosphere, the floors, walls and ceilings

are faced with plain timber planking, which contrasts with the shiny, metallic envelope of the

exterior.

The different areas of the deck are made of glass. People walking along “music street” have a

view into the hall of the auditorium, into the main recording studio, the glass bay of the first-

floor administration and radio areas, and in particular the club. The building has few windows on

the outside, in order to lend maximum power to the volume of the deck and porch, a wide

opening that invites people to sit on the terrace in the sun. In the porch, we are elsewhere, on the

threshold of the mysterious world of the interior, but still in contact with the reality outside.
The programme is primarily designed for younger people. The architecture is efficient and

“visceral”, devoid of decoration or superfluity. This strange, raw structure, which opens up to

welcome the public and the sunshine, reflects the energy of music, the music of today and of

tomorrow.

Modern Music Centre Evreux – Building Information

Title: Modern Music Centre – Evreux Location

• Evreux (Eure)

Client

• Evreux municipality

Project management

• Hérault Arnod Architectes, lead architects

• Inex, fluids

• Batiserf, structure

• Michel Forgue, economist

• DUCKS Scéno, stage design

• Lasa, acoustics

Area

• 2450 m² + 570 m² covered linking areas

Costings

• €5.7 million excluding VAT + €0.5 million outdoor excluding VAT

Timetable

• Competition Sep 2008

• Soon in progress

• Delivery planned 2013

Programme

• Concert room club (150 standing places + cafe restaurant)

• Concert hall 600 standing places

• Rehearsal studios

• Office and radio spaces

• Artists’ residence

• Covered connecting areas