Re.: Publicly funded investments into static stones (construction of concert halls) vs. rolling stones (events such as concerts) in Germany

(This article comes as a public release and will be linked to the LinkedIn discussion group “Concert booking online” at https://www.dhirubhai.net/groups/6581090. It cannot be posted there because of a character count limit. The following article discusses and comments the situation and trends in the example of Munich/Germany. This is only at first and on the surface rather specific/local. There are aspects and issues which have more general or other relevance.)

According to recent news, the municipality of Munich has made a step towards the execution of the construction of a brandnew concert hall, let’s call it philharmonic.concert.hall.munich.2 or nick it pch.2 . https://www.sueddeutsche.de/muenchen/klassik-klotz-nicht-so-1.3726878 . The estimated expense at this point: some 350 million Euro. Moderate. For readers who do not know and contrary to common knowledge and experience: It does even in Germany nowadays on occasions happen that an expensive and large publicly commissioned and funded building construction project gets completed. In time, in budget, within design concept and within specified properties and features/fulfilling requirements of usability, security, aesthetics, health etc. Not often, though. As opposed to projects mostly everywhere else in the world where what in Germany is the exception, there it’s the rule. It’s a fairly safe bet to suggest the actual doubling or tripling within construction phase. As every time, the frameworking parameters will alter during construction: requirements, designs, laws. Is that a problem? No, it looks like it isn’t. Germany makes a huge federal fiscal budget surplus. When even those trainloads of public money are spent, burnt, exhausted, then private sponsors jump in: compensate to cover the errors of planners, contractors and other culprits. Here in the country which regards itself the champion of regulation, the fundamental principles of project planning, execution, control and responsibility are absolutely non existent. Dilettance, ignorance, incompetence all over. Scheissegal (sorry, there isn’t an adequate English technical term, maybe wtf comes close), other principles prevail …. So, conclusion is the rule of thumb: If you throw enough money at it, then it’ll open one day, and nobody cares.

Isn’t the design contest award winner a real beauty? It has in public circles been received positively. ok, matter of taste maybe. For readers who do not know: There was previously a really ugly looking food factory, processed potatos, and then for several decades an urban desert sitting there on the premises where the pch.2 will be. A real genius who utilized the thunderous atmosphere of a nearing storm or other natural disaster to decorate the object. To beat that ..., see underneath,

in terms of the looks, obviously in the country of the potato and weisswurst, the requirements and standards can’t and needn’t be too high. Can’t help it, the genius of the inspiration source comes to my mind. Admittedly, in giant replica efforts it is always difficult to achieve the perfection of the original. Only harsh critics will object that the handle for removal/recycling isn’t obvious/perhaps missing and forgotten while the template clearly has that.

Maybe the looks are totally unimportant anyways. It’s primarily supposed to function.

For readers who might instinctively doubt my failed attempt of a balanced description and do not know: Munich has a philharmonic concert hall, the “Philharmonie” building, admittedly opened in the forgotten antique historic ages, 1985. As reference to the article’s headline: It is made from stone, red bricks to be specific, and this can be seen from outside;

its main use classical, but there has taken place other stuff too, Jazz and Rock, and yes, the Rolling Stones performed there too, if my memory doesn’t fail. Of course, there is an opera house also, subsidized with a huge annual amount, and a number of smaller theatres and other facilities. I remember some older newspaper postings according to which for 2 reasons, the “Philharmonie” and the annexing community centre building “Gasteig” are regarded obsolete, at least strongly due for renovation. And will be, for several hundred million Euros. The cost of renovation far exceeding the original construction cost. Reason 1, the design and health. The building was built at the utilization of asbestos. Can hardly be disputed. Reason 2, the alleged deficits in sound quality. I have attended numerous concerts in the “old Philharmonie”, and the only important thing I can complain about is the fact that I always only obtained a seat way more distant from the stage than ideal. Shows always popular and sounding great, sold out every time. A number of multi-million people metropoles might be proud to possess one like that. As far as I remember, the “old Philharmonie”'s destiny is uncertain, with the possibility of a total demolition. That would make a life cycle of what, 30 years? Every commercial and residential building in Germany has a longer lifetime than that.

For readers who do not know: Munich is that city … At least it regards itself a “city” … in the world where mostly everyone and his brother only commutes and parks and pesters by car. The “city” however entertains 2 different and separate public underground railway systems which hardly anyone uses. The city in which both systems go star-wise with all lines to that one and only single hot spot, the “Marienplatz”. There is a big church there, catholic, and a shopping centre. Now guess what, the devices/public transport systems are regarded insufficient. A third and new line will be built. The expense: in the billions. To do what? Link up something new, go a new direction? No. Same direction, parallel to the existing one, same hotspot, catholic church and shopping centre. Once star-wise, consequently always everything star-wise.

Are these matters related at all? Public buildings, public transport? In my opinion they absolutely are and demonstrate one thing. The centralistic focus to the extreme absurdity, one-sidedness/ignorance of every alternative, the carelessness. (quote “Wollt Ihr die totale Einseitigkeit?” unquote, disgusting quotation out of context, answer unnecessary)

There is, of course, a convincing, strong reason for pch.2 . And that is. Munich is rich and ambitious. There is a peer city on the Northern coast of Germany which has just recently placed a damn prestigious building in their territory. Which has a questionable past, present and future.

It doesn’t matter at all that no matter by how many hundred millions the actual expense exceeds the projected expense, this thing had to be pulled by all means. The absurd amount is about equal to the annual budget of a medium size country in Africa. It doesn’t matter at all that no matter how many hundred millions were spent extra on doubleplusgreat sound design and ex post now turn out to be totally wasted. Not myself but neutral and objective sources evaluate its sound experience as poor - a failure! In soccer, the recent clue is: yes, money shoots goals! But it looks like there is no correlation between money and sound in the concert house design discipline, at least no satisfaction guarantee - unsatisfied-money back. Matter of luck. Plus, … I mean minus … Or … and, the building will with certainty make records and history as the largest, greatest, best, most expensive sub-marine sub-merged philharmonic hall of the whole world. As you see, it is built by the width of a hand (ok, few meters) above today’s sea level at average tide, and it is a certainty that the entire coast line will already in a few decades be hundreds of kilometers into the country. You will need an ocean cruiser to get to the site. Believe it or not, in Japan, they raised an entire airport terminal building (Kansai II) by 5m or so because of liquefaction/other physical phenomena. In both cases, it might perhaps cost just a few billions extra to add that hydraulic pump which does that job without necessity for such re-works ... You can maybe somehow lift a building, you can maybe lift a city. No doubt, Venice will do, but can you raise the entire much larger than Venice city around and keep it connected to the continent? In the meantime (years!), the city which boasts this prestige object hasn’t had a penny for the support of anything else. Especially not for anything off the mainstream. The deficit is enormous. For folks trying to render a performance a bit off beat, it has and will for decades be hopeless to step on these deserted grounds. But all these matters and considerations do not matter at all when matters are about competition and pride. City H has this, then we in city M must and will beat that by the length of millions.

Nothing is learnt from past mistakes. Mistakes are repeated and one mistake leads to another. One of the strange things about Germany, in construction everything is at first planned and done with ultimate perfection and at least for eternity. (theory) If we take the Munich "“old Philharmonie”-experience, 30 years, and if we check what it's like in Hamburg, I give the Elbphilharmonie not a much longer period, say 60 years, (reality) then it gets clear: We build to waste. Now that new planned thing pch.2 in Munich cannot but be regarded under these subjections. It will soon be wasted. Since we are also talking about events - The federal and the regional state governments spent a ridiculous amount in the billions on the 2016 Hamburg G-20 event. The insurance companies are still paying. It had to be carried out there and nowhere else because some ambitious politicians wanted to force other ambitious or not so ambitious politicians to choir with them "Freude" and because that building is there and the opening date (actually, 80% plan completed only, rest uncertain, empty pockets) was few months prior (planned opening date about one decade sooner). What a tremendous freude this all was. The political results/achievements/agreements? There was justified opposition and unjustified violence, anyway, the city became a horrible battlefield. People got killed, property damage in the hundreds of millions. And no, I do not think that the president of the USA checked in by nuke-driven submarine boat in order to render his expression of freude. Maybe these most unfortunate real events explain the strange use of the depressing colors in the pch.2 drawing simulations.

The point of all these words. In my opinion, tremendous amounts are always spent recklessly on similar ideas/concepts/genres. Often even wasted. The breadth, width and depth of the offer/what else is available is ignored. One takes it all. Not enough that the cake is going just to one, there aren’t even breadcrumbs for the rest. This applies to building facilities and also to the subsidization of kinds/genres. It is so here, and I guess it's also so there. Let me know. Probably not everywhere. Anyway, the mission statement for this group “Concert booking online” from its earliest beginning has been formulated as “This group promotes artists of all sorts and places: To get opportunities for bringing their work to the people in live performances. Special focus on the process of offering, negotiating and making deals online.” Still true, but this statement gets clearer with the addition: “For an open mind, diversity, variety, independence, tolerance, progress, quality, fairness, adequateness.” Maybe I’ll have to re-think this and place it there in the group later. It has perhaps become apparent that I am a fan of independent and experimental projects. On the other hand, I do by far not like it all what falls within that category. And no, I did not mean particularly to claim more concerts or public subsidy on concerts by the Rolling Stones. And I also know that many don’t share my preferences. If it were so, I’d actually be rather disappointed. But then again, I guess that from a more neutral and objective perspective, some of my suggestions are simple and sad truths.

image sources credits:

Rolling Stones group

Sueddeutsche Zeitung / Cukrowicz Nachbaur Architekten

Pforzheimer Zeitung

Tropicana / GrabCAD

Norddeutscher Rundfunk

City of Munich/Gasteig

City of Hamburg/Elbphilharmonie