Multi-Cultural Space

architects Andrija Rusan & Snježana Jakopčić, Gordan Mehmedović, Darija Radivojević
project Reshaping the "Vatroslav Lisinski" Small Hall, Zagreb, Croatia
written by Dubravka Kisić

 

The Lisinski music palace is in many ways a building typical for Zagreb. It was the result of mixed scepsis, heated conflicts of opinion, administration meddling, yet also of pride, ambitious plans and the exceptional efforts of creative people. Up until the construction of this concert-hall music was played in barely adequate places. Beside the Opera, concerts were held at the Croatian  Music Society, in “Istra” where the public patiently endured standing motionless so as to reduce the sound of creaking chairs. Alongside this, music was played in any and every suitable venue from pubs and coffee houses, the City shooting range, the old Riding-Hall, the “Kolo”, at the Concordia stadium, in the pavilion of the Zagreb Fair, in worker’s centres and factory halls. The new music palace should have put things in their place and had to show that Zagreb was a city with  strong music tradition.