Elbphilharmonie, Hamburg
Herzog & de Meuron

By 2001, the Basel-based architects had already completed major international projects such as Beijing’s Olympic Stadium and the Tate Modern in London. For Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie, they were granted wide creative freedom. From the outset, their design crowned the warehouse structure with a dramatic, wave-like glass form. The projected cost of 241 million euros was to be funded partly by donations and largely through hotel and residential revenues generated by the building itself.

Public accessibility was a cornerstone of the concept. The concert hall’s stage sits at the center of the space, encircled by seating. But even more importantly, a public plaza opens the building to all—ticket holder or not. The shimmering façade and sculptural roof have made the “Elphi” a beloved symbol of the city.

The building process was uniquely demanding. Only one company worldwide was capable of screen-printing chrome onto glass, and just two could bend it into the required forms. To ensure top-tier acoustics, the concert hall was prototyped at full scale and refined by acoustician Yasuhisa Toyota to give guests the sensation of sitting among the musicians.

To manage the unique acoustic demands of its harbor location, the concert hall was constructed with a double-shell design. The inner core is suspended on flexible steel springs, creating complete acoustic isolation. The hall’s intricate ornamentation is designed to optimize sound distribution—over 15 kilometers of grooves line the interior walls.

The steel roof, though visually light and fluid, weighs approximately 8,000 metric tons. Measuring 6,000 square meters, it reaches a height of 110 meters. Constructed from 1,000 metric tons of steel, the rooftop is adorned with 6,000 reflective disks, each between 90 and 110 cm in diameter. While the form appears effortless, its construction required four years—rather than the originally estimated six months.

Even the spherical glass light fixtures in the foyers posed a challenge. After an extensive search, a workshop in the Bohemian sandstone region of the Czech Republic was found that was capable of producing the large, thick-walled globes.

Formally Consistent to the Last Detail: The architects chose the FSB 1023/1053 handle series by Johannes Potente. The design references Max Bill’s classic Ulm lever handle from the 1950s. Herzog & de Meuron praised its modernity and timelessness, noting that the Potente model features the softest geometry among FSB’s U-shaped handles.

Depending on the requirements, the handle appears in different configurations: as an AGL® fitting 72 1023, as a lever/knob set with spherical knob 23 2302, or as a WC set 76 1023 with thumb turn. Window handles 34 1023 008 and 34 1023 170 are used in the hotel and residential areas.

For electronic access control, the architects specified the FSB 26 1053 version with M 300 system integration. They also deployed the angular FSB 76 1004 (AGL® FS fire-rated variant) by David Chipperfield. This precise pairing of handles mirrors the shimmering dot pattern of the building’s façade—evidence of meticulous design continuity down to the smallest detail.