Kazakhstan Central Concert Hall

Kazakhstan Central Concert Hall
General information
Status	Completed
Location	Astana, Kazakhstan
Coordinates	51°07′22″N 71°26′30″E / 51.12278°N 71.44167°E / 51.12278; 71.44167
Construction started	June 2004
Opening	Dec 2009
Cost	€ 120.000.000,00
Technical details
Floor area	55,000 m2 (590,000 sq ft)
Design and construction
Architect(s)	Manfredi Nicoletti
Main contractor	Mabetex

The Central Concert Hall (Kazakh: «Qazaqstan» Ortalyq kontsert zaly; Russian: Центральный концертный зал «Казахстан») is a center for performing arts in Astana, the capital city of Kazakhstan. It was designed by Italian architect Manfredi Nicoletti and inaugurated by the President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, on the nation's Independence Day, 15 December, in 2009.^[1][2]

The building’s shape evokes the dynamism of a flower's petals. The building's external structure comprises a series of curved inclined walls made of concrete with a blue back painted glass panels cladding. Those structures protect the building's interior functions from Astana’s harsh weather.

The building features a thirty-meter-high foyer which extends over 3.000 square meters, which is intended to create an urban-scale internal public square that could welcome the citizens of Astana throughout the entire year. The building contains three different music halls. It also encloses restaurants, shops, and bars.

The main Concert hall for 3,500 seats is one of the biggest of its kind and is capable of hosting a multitude of different events, from classical to pop music, ballet and conferences thanks to its acoustic flexibility. This flexibility is produced by a system of acoustic curtains and a special false ceiling design called a black-hole, which absorbs most of the acoustic reflections of the hall.

The two smaller halls, of 400 and 200 seats respectively, have been designed to be flexible enough to host chamber music as well as cinema and conferences.

The International Astana Action Film Festival was held there in 2010.

• manfredinicoletti.com