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CONTACT:
Chuck Loebbaka at (847) 491-2887 or c-loebbaka@northwestern.edu
FOR RELEASE: February 19, 2008
Northwestern to Build New Music Building
 EVANSTON, Ill. --- Northwestern University will construct a
$90 million School of Music building on the lakefront of its Evanston
campus, Northwestern President Henry S. Bienen announced today.
Envisioned as a signature building for the University, the new
facility will enable the School of Music to consolidate all of
its programs in one area for the first time in more than 35 years.
The new music building will be located just south of the School’s
Pick-Staiger Concert Hall and Regenstein Hall of Music on
the southern end of Northwestern’s lakefront campus. The
structure is projected to be five stories tall with spectacular
views of Lake Michigan and the Chicago skyline.
With approximately 116,000 gross squarefeet, the new building
will include classrooms, teaching labs, academic faculty offices,
teaching studios for choral, opera, piano and voice faculty,
practice rooms, student lounges and administrative offices. There
also will be choral rehearsal room and library, an opera rehearsal
room/black box theater and a 400-seat recital hall.
Northwestern School of Music Dean Toni-Marie Montgomery said, “This
is a momentous occasion in the 113-year history of the School
of Music. The new building will strengthen our position as one
of the nation’s premier schools of music by providing
state-of-the-art facilities for our talented students and outstanding
faculty. The project also will foster a greater sense
of community between our academic and performance departments.
I am grateful to President Bienen for his extraordinary commitment
to this initiative.
The architect for the new music building
will be chosen via a competition among a small number of firms
experienced in designing performing arts facilities and signature
buildings. The architect will be selected by summer 2008, with
construction scheduled to begin in late 2009. The facility
is expected to be completed in spring 2012.
As the building is being completed, work is slated to begin
on a new Music and Arts Green to the west of the building that
will provide a 120-foot wide pedestrian-friendly green space.
This dramatic new gateway to the new music building and the
fine arts area will provide a major open space amenity that
can become a focal point for special events and passive recreation. The green
space will improve pedestrian safety and circulation significantly while
still allowing vehicular access to the current buildings. The
outstanding views of the lake and Chicago from that area will
be preserved.
President Bienen said, “I am delighted that the University
will realize its goal of creating a centralized ‘music
village’ for our
faculty, students and programs and enhance the facilities for our students
and faculty. We will continue to raise funds for the facility as plans for
it move forward.”
When the new building is completed, the School of Music will vacate three
facilities currently used by the school: the Music Administration Building
at 711 Elgin Road, built in 1874; the Music Practice Building, a small
facility near the Music Administration Building that was completed in
1915; and Lutkin Hall, a 400-seat performance/lecture venue built in 1941
at 700 University Place. Northwestern has not yet determined what those
facilities will be used for at that time.
The Northwestern University School of Music is one of the oldest
degree-granting music schools in the United States, combining the resources
of a world-class private research university with conservatory-level music
training. The
school is home to 640 undergraduate and graduate students and a world-renowned
faculty of more than 125, many of whom are members of the Chicago Symphony
and Chicago Lyric Opera orchestras. School of Music alumni are
found in major arts institutions and universities worldwide, in performance,
teaching, and arts administration.
Map of location of new music facility
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