National Sawdust (NS), a $16 million, 13 000-square-foot, state-of-the-art
space in the culturally vibrant Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, New York,
opened in October 2015. The non-profit music venue was designed by multidisciplinary architecture practice Bureau V.
A
dopting the name of the factory once housed within the centuryold building’s shell, National Sawdust will provide composers and
musicians a setting in which they can flourish, and a place where
they are given commissioning support, mentoring and other critical
resources essential to create, and then share, their work. For audiences
– serious fans and casual listeners alike – the venue will be a place to
discover genrespanning music at accessible ticket prices.
Describing their design approach to the venue, Bureau V states,
“In order to move forward, we decided to look back. At its core, the
design of National Sawdust is a retooling of the 18th century chamber hall model as an
incubator for new music.” The wonderful anachronism of the chamber hall provides a
simple but vital resource to musicians and composers of all genres: a home where they
can dwell, compose, experiment, rehearse, record, and premiere new work. National
Sawdust provides an extraordinarily intimate space – with a capacity ranging from 120
to 350 – to experience genre-spanning music, at accessible ticket prices.
National Sawdust’s design maintains the building’s historic brick exterior while
providing a refined new interior. Bureau V worked closely with acoustics and theatre
teams at Arup, to devise an acoustically-driven chamber hall with a wrap-around
balcony that accommodates 170 patrons in row seating, 120 patrons in cabaret
seating, or up to 350 standing guests. With variable stage configurations that can be
lowered flush with the floor, the double-height venue can also hold a 70-piece orchestra
for rehearsals and recordings.
PROJECT TEAM
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CLIENT: Kevin Dolan / National Sawdust
DESIGN ARCHITECT: Bureau V
ARCHITECT OF RECORD: SLAB Architecture, PLLC
ARUP: Acoustics, Audio/Visual, Theatre, Lighting & Fire
Consultant
STRUCTURAL ENGINEER: Liam O’Hanlon Engineering
CONTRACTOR: Alcon Builder’s Group, Inc
PHOTOGRAPHER: Floto + Warner
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