A specialised team of HAVEL & PARTNERS lawyers led by partner Josef Hlavička and managing associate Kamila Kulhánková successfully arranged the organisation of an architectural competition for the design of the new Vltava Philharmonic Hall in Prague. The winner was the Danish studio Bjarke Ingels Group. According to the plans of the city administration, the unique building, which will be built on the Bubenské nábřeží embankment near the Vltavská metro station, should be completed in 2032.

For HAVEL & PARTNERS this is another successfully completed architectural competition with international participation. A total of 115 teams from 25 countries entered the competition, and 5 renowned architectural studios were also invited to participate in advance.

The subject of the competition, announced by the City of Prague and the Prague Institute of Planning and Development, was to design a contemporary music centre that would meet global standards (in terms of acoustics, capacity, layout, technical facilities, architecture, and urbanism) and at the same time underline Prague’s reputation as a world cultural metropolis and a symbol of the Czech musical tradition. The Vltava Philharmonic Hall will be home to two orchestras – the Prague Symphony Orchestra FOK and the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra.

“The Vltava Philharmonic Hall, in the design presented by the Danish studio Bjarke Ingels Group, will become a vibrant centre of life on Vltavská. A new urban park will stretch to the east, the south side will open up access to the water, a square will be created on the west side, and the new urban district of Bubny-Zátory will be visible to the north. The building itself will be accessible from all directions and levels,” said Michal Sedláček, chairman of the jury.

“I am convinced that the new Philharmonic Hall building will immediately become a symbol of Prague. The authors have perfectly understood the place where they are putting the building, and in the context of Prague they came up with a completely new approach to public space,” added Petr Hlaváček, 1st Deputy Mayor, about the winning design. The Vltava Philharmonic Hall building will have a total of three halls: the main concert hall for about 1,800 spectators, a small hall for chamber music with a capacity of about 700 seats, and a multifunctional hall for other genres and types of events with a capacity of up to 500 seats. According to the announced estimates, it should be completed within ten years.