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Sumit Singhal
Sumit Singhal loves modern architecture. He comes from a family of builders who have built more than 20 projects in the last ten years near Delhi in India. He has recently started writing about the architectural projects that catch his imagination. Montreux Jazz Heritage Lab 2 in Switzerland by EPFL+ECAL Lab with ALICEJanuary 14th, 2017 by Sumit Singhal
Article source: mint LIST The Montreux Jazz Heritage Lab 2 is a research program at the crossroads between architecture, design and technology. The program is led by the EPFL+ECAL Lab in close collaboration with the architectural lab ALICE, at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), one of the two Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology. This new permanent and immersive installation is hosted within the new campus building designed by the architect Kengo Kuma, and situated just next to the Montreux Jazz Café. Rather than mimicking the past, the project leads the audience on a unique journey through 50 years of history and 5.000 hours of audiovisual recordings made at the Montreux Jazz Festival. Visitors truly feel that they are live on stage with Ella Fitzgerald, standing beside Miles Davis’ trumpet, or composing Smoke on the Water together with Deep Purple.  Image Courtesy © Michel Denancé
 Image Courtesy © Michel Denancé After an 8-year long preservation project kick-started by Audemars Piguet, Montreux Sounds and EPFL, visitors can now delve into 50 years of concerts and have world’s largest collection of live jazz, blues and rock recordings at their fingertips – the first audiovisual library ever to be listed in the UNESCO “Memory of the World” Register.  Image Courtesy © Joël Tettamanti “The original concert experience is set against the backdrop of Lake Geneva and the mountains, the atmosphere of festival-goers in their thousands, the unfolding of events on stage, and above all the flesh-and-blood presence of the musicians. We can’t recreate this. Instead, we need to make the most of what digital has to offer, on order to create an alternative, complementary experience,” says Nicolas Henchoz, the project curator.  Image Courtesy © Joël Tettamanti Several principles have driven the multiple design and research choices: from a deep desire to preserve the recordings’ cultural value and content by keeping the original footage unaltered and prevalent, to the enhancement of the immersive experience. To boost the power of the central images, the sidewalls of the installation consist of mirrored panels featuring a LED light grid, which reveals data and visuals about the concerts.  Image Courtesy © Joël Tettamanti The double curvature of the central screen takes the form of a torus segment, which creates a sense of depth without generating fatigue or queasiness. This sophisticated geometry offers a variety of views both from the Montreux Jazz Café and the external square, the heart of the university campus. The partial, intriguing transparency towards the café creates an enveloping atmosphere during the day and illuminates the campus at night. The set-up simultaneously provides an intimate space within which to view the archive, and sparks broader dialogue with its environment.  Image Courtesy © Joël Tettamanti Last, but not least, the building system contributes to the sonic environment by hosting speakers for 3D sound and absorbing sound reflections in the installation space. An innovative browsing system permits the public to scroll a horizontal timeline and choose between over 44.000 tracks or performances, in a simple touch.  Image Courtesy © Joël Tettamanti Following its public opening, the Montreux Jazz Heritage Lab 2 will continue to evolve. It will serve as a tool to explore new research issues, provide a testing ground for designers, and also observe users’ perceptions, on order to better understand the impact of immersive devices.  Image Courtesy © Joël Tettamanti About ALICE The ALICE laboratory at EPFL focuses on insideness as a primary condition where the lives of humans take place. Projects on public space and the interior of the city and human habitat serve as a point of departure for in-depth research relating landscape, urban environment and architecture to our embodied existence in space. ALICE engages in research through three main vehicles: 1) research through design; 2) interdisciplinary fundamental research; 3) the development and implementation of innovative teaching methodologies at Bachelor and Masters level.  Image Courtesy © Joël Tettamanti About EPFL+ECAL Lab The EPFL+ECAL Lab is a laboratory located in the ECAL (University of Art and Design Lausanne) building, belonging to EPFL (Ecole polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne). Its aim is to explore the potential of emerging technologies through design – in other words, to transform scientific performance into user experience. It also tackles the challenges presented by new technologies. The EPFL+ECAL Lab is linked to the Vice Chair for innovation and technology transfer. It thus collaborates with numerous companies and institutes, working on real life projects. Its work is regularly the subject of exhibitions, conferences, and articles.  Image Courtesy © ALICE EPFL The EPFL+ECAL Lab brings a new approach to disruptive innovation by combining technology, design, and society, as described in the publication “Design for Innovative Technologies, from disruption to acceptance”. To this end, it collaborates with the ECAL, its founding partner, and additional institutes such as the Royal College of Art in London, the ENSCI in Paris, and Parsons The New School for Design in New York. Its team boasts expertise not just in design, engineering, and architecture, but also in user experience evaluation.  Image Courtesy © ALICE EPFL  Image Courtesy © EPFL+ECAL Lab with ALICE  Image Courtesy © EPFL+ECAL Lab with ALICE  Image Courtesy © EPFL+ECAL Lab with ALICE  Image Courtesy © EPFL+ECAL Lab with ALICE
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Tags: Montreux, Switzerland Categories: Autocad, Laboratory and Office, Rhinoceros |
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