BRATTLEBORO — The new Brattleboro Music Center has won several design awards, and so has been selected as the site of the annual meeting of the Vermont Chapter of the American Institute of Architects on Thursday, Oct. 17.
The BMC campus design received the 2018 American Institute of Architects-Maine Award for Design Excellence.
The jury of architects described the project as “a great example of how to do more with less to elevate the function and mission of an important organization ... The material palette is extremely spare and economical yet beautiful.”
The BMC project was also named winner of a 2018 AIA-Vermont Honor Award and 2018 AIA New England Citation Award.
The buildings, which include the Music School and Performance Auditorium, were designed by Scott Simons Architects of Portland, Maine, and are located across from Living Memorial Park. Project contractor was DEW Construction Corporation.
Presenters at the meeting will include Austin Smith, AIA, Phil Cheney of Scott Simons Architects, and Jonah Sacks from Acentech Acoustics, who will focus on the configurations, proportions, and finishes for specific types of musical performances.
The presentation team will include the acoustic consultant, who will cover the fundamentals of how certain sounds move through spaces and how to shape those spaces for sound.
A 15-minute musical performance by BMC faculty members Bruce Griffin on piano and Robin Matthias on flute will demonstrate the superb acoustics.
The Center includes administrative offices, an array of practice rooms, a music library, a percussion studio, a multi-use classroom, and a light-filled recital hall. Connected to the music school by a canopied walkway is a performance-quality auditorium.