Behind the Project: Cincinnati Music Hall

The rendering above demonstrates placement of original and new orchestra level walls. Red lines indicate the original orchestra level walls, while the green lines represent the new walls for the reduced footprint. The blue and orange areas mark new auditorium vestibules and a new lounge. The purple areas represent new storage spaces.

Knee walls at the front rows of the balcony and gallery levels were historically significant and needed to remain in place. The lobby floor levels surrounding the auditorium were also fixed in place. With those fixed positions, the elevations of the front rows and last rows on all three seating levels could not change, while the number and depth of all of the rows in between had to be revised.

What resulted were fewer rows at every seating level, with greater leg room and increased riser heights. This provided more comfort and better sightlines, but the geometries of these curved seating areas and their new aisles were anything but simple. 

The decorative plaster knee walls were carefully protected at the face of the balcony and gallery, and new steel reinforcement was bolted to the original timbers. New seating tiers were framed over the balcony and gallery trusses, while new suspended concrete slabs were poured at the orchestra level.

The result is a room that looks like a brighter, refreshed version of the Music Hall that audiences remembered prior to the renovation. However, the orchestra level in particular feels more intimate, and all levels enjoy more leg room and greatly improved sightlines. Extending the stage apron and shifting the symphony closer to the audience, combined with an overall reduction in room volume, has transformed the acoustic character of the hall to the benefit of the audience and the musicians.