Berwald Hall, Concert hall in Östermalm, Stockholm, Sweden
Berwald Hall is a low, wide concert building of pale grey concrete on Dag Hammarskjölds väg in Östermalm, its stepped rectangular blocks faced with tall vertical concrete fins between recessed glass panels. A deep flat-roofed canopy supported by thick pillars projects over the entrance bay, where raised white letters read "BER". About two-thirds of the structure is blasted into the rock, and the hexagonal concert hall inside seats 1,302 people, 482 of them in the stalls.
In 1966 Swedish Radio's Olof Rydbeck and Karl-Birger Blomdahl asked minister Olof Palme for a hall where the radio orchestra could rehearse, record and perform. The building was erected 1976–1979 by Reinhold for 58 million kronor of licence funds, and opened on 30 November 1979 with Herbert Blomstedt conducting Berwald's Sinfonie singulière and Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique.
The hall is named after Franz Berwald, one of Sweden's foremost 19th-century composers; Carl Eldh's portrait sculpture of him stands in the foyer by the entrance. Since 2003, the Baltic Sea Festival has been based here each late summer, bringing together orchestras and youth ensembles from around the Baltic and northern Europe. Most Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra concerts are broadcast live nationally on P2.
The hall stands at Dag Hammarskjölds väg 3, next to Diplomatstaden and the American embassy, with its entrance set back under a concrete canopy marked "BER". About two-thirds of the building lies blasted into the rock, so the foyer and stairs continue into raw bedrock behind glass balustrades. The main entrance holds Carl Eldh's portrait sculpture of Franz Berwald.
About two-thirds of the building is blasted into the bedrock, which is why architect Erik Ahnborg noted the hall stays cool in summer and holds warmth in winter. The site was chosen partly so the hall would not look too large, and a tunnel links it to the Radio House. Locals call it "gruvan", the mine.
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