DR Koncerthuset — Attraction in Copenhagen Municipality

With DR Concert Hall, Denmark gets a national and international concert venue and a new architectural landmark for the capital. The complex, part of the TV network's new Headquarters in Copenhagen, contains all facilities for Danish Broadcasting Corporation's music production.

Nouvel's design encloses a series of volumes, housing a different program or function, in a 45 meter tall rectangular box with transparent blue "screen" walls. The building will be constantly changing depending on the lighting conditions and the time of day; both revealing and concealing the interior. At night the building lights up with images projected on the "screen."

The architecture dematerializes and becomes a matter of light and surface effects.

The first idea for the building was the concept of the blue screen, a kind of lantern magic, because of the exceptional situation of the urban condition being a new development. I try to be a contextual architect and generally like to have a dialogue with my neighbors, but in this new urban situation I did not know my neighbors. So I tried to think about myself an an architect in the 11th century who had to build a Cathedral in a city in Europe, and how the buildings then happened around the Cathedral. This was possible because this is probably the largest and most public building here. The idea after was to create a kind of question "What is this building?" When you see the building during the day you have a kind of feeling for what is behind the screen, but not really, and it changes a lot with the light. When the sun is lower you see the skyline of the building inside and the framing of the glass facade behind the screen. It is a paradox between a very simple building, and you feel that inside, but you don't really know what is there, only that it is complex. So it is this relationship between simplicity and complexity that is the base of the design. So the idea was to create a kind of small world belonging to the Concert Hall with a lot of specific singular details, materials and spaces, so when you open a door from one studio to another it is always a new feeling, a new ambience. That is really the basic architectural idea of the...

Musicians performing at DR Koncerthuset - Copenhagen: 9/10

The quality of musicians coming to perform here is outstanding.

Concert hall facilities: 8/10

The acoustics are excellent, the lighting is well-designed, and the seats are comfortable.

Access to toilets: 1/10

I don’t think there’s an elevator to access the toilets—if anyone knows otherwise, please comment. The stairs are extremely long, making access difficult, especially for elderly visitors.

Bar: 2/10

It's pricey. Given that tickets aren’t cheap, the bar should function more as a service rather than just a business. Of course, making a profit is understandable, but the pricing should be reviewed. Lower prices could lead to higher sales, ultimately increasing profit. As it stands, many people opt to dine and have a pre-concert drink elsewhere before attending, which should be reconsidered by the Koncerthuset sales team.

Customer service (online): 10/10

I accidentally purchased a ticket for the wrong date, and after contacting customer service, their response was incredibly fast. They provided a solution immediately, resolving the issue in just one email.

Coat storage policy: 0/10

Leaving your coat in the designated storage (both attended and unattended, and both free of charge) is mandatory. When I asked why, an employee controlling access said it was a "safety protocol in case of fire," which makes no sense. There is no official safety regulation supporting this rule.

Visitors should be allowed to keep their coats if they wish,whether for personal comfort, to avoid waiting in line to retrieve them, or simply to prevent loss. The policy is unnecessary and,...

Over the last 10 years I have been to a Koncert at DRs koncerthus a few times a year, so now I feel it’s the time for a review. First impression of the venue is “why are we standing on a construction site?” Then you get inside and think “Are you sure this is where they play epic classic music?” The walls in the foyer are grey, boring and the staff have to direct everybody around due to an artistic maze of construction like interior.

However, this is all a facade to create contrast to the most amazing piece of architecture ever created to facilitate music. I’m not gonna try to describe the room itself with words, but trust me that you have to experience this place at least once in your life. On top of the visuals, you also get amazing sound and one of the best orchestras in the world, and the seats are just as comfortable as they should be. The perfect experience.

In the break, you get back to reality and is once again met with grey walls, and a bar with waaaay to little staff, making you waste your whole break waiting in line, for a very limited selection of drinks.

After the performance there is a 30% chance of a reception in the bar where you are not invited, meaning no relaxing lounge and drinks for you. If would have been nice though, since the 2 lane car exit can’t handle the 300 cars that want to leave all at once, and you have to sit around anyway.

The contrast between total epic and absolute failure is so clear that you start to wonder if this is all part of the art, and that was the plan all along.......?

Go there. Be patient. Enjoy the performance. Laugh at the chaos. Trust me you...