About the Bing Concert Hall
The Bing Concert Hall at Stanford will play a vital role on campus and in the local community. The hall’s exceptional acoustics and state‐of‐the‐art technical capabilities will showcase the world’s finest performers, provide audiences with a superb listening experience, and lift students’ artistic aspirations and abilities to new heights.
The hall is an important part of the Stanford Arts Initiative, a university‐wide effort to promote the integration of the arts and creativity into every field of study. The project reinforces Stanford’s broad investments in music, drama, dance, the visual arts, film, and creative writing.
The name of the hall reflects Stanford’s gratitude and deep affection for Helen and Peter Bing, ’55, for their generous support of this far‐reaching project.
BUILDING PLAN
The Bing Concert Hall is being designed from the inside out, starting with the connection between artist and audience. Everything from acoustics to amenities fosters an intimacy that allows great works and great performers to connect directly with listeners. The hall is scheduled to open early in 2013. The concert hall will have 844 seats in an intimate vineyard-style configuration, with terraced sections wrapping all the way around the stage. The shape allows sound to radiate naturally and places more audience members closer to performers. A hall this size is well suited to a range of music groups, from small chamber ensembles to medium‐sized orchestras.
The glass-enclosed John A. and Cynthia Fry Gunn Grand Foyer will be an integral part of the facility, encompassing event space for informal gatherings and socializing, school‐group programs, and special pre- and post-concert performances and lectures. Other unique spaces within the hall will include a sizeable and acoustically superior rehearsal studio for campus and visiting performers, a state‐of‐the‐art recording studio that will be linked to both the main hall and rehearsal studio, artists’ suites, and a performers’ lounge and garden to serve as both a greenroom for artists and space for casual events for guests.
THE SITE
Located at the gateway to the campus, the Bing Concert Hall will sit adjacent to the existing Frost Amphitheater at the east end of Museum Way. The hall’s main entry plaza will face the existing Cantor Arts Center on the other side of Palm Drive. Visitors will enjoy direct access to the concert hall facilitating stronger ties among the university, regional artists, and audiences.