BERLIN, May 20 (Reuters) - Scores of firefighters battled a blaze at the home of the Berlin Philharmonic orchestra on Tuesday.
Around 170 firefighters and more than 30 vehicles were at the scene trying to extinguish the fire which broke out during rehearsals open to the public, a fire brigade spokesman said.
Television footage showed a pall of smoke billowing from the roof of the building, a controversial design by Hans Scharoun that was completed in 1963 and renowned for its acoustics.
Musicians and visitors to the yellow Philharmonic building near the city centre had escaped and were no longer in danger, he said. There were no reports of injuries.
"The fight is continuing," the spokesman said. "I can't yet say what caused it. We're in the process of opening the roof from above so we can get to the source of the blaze better."
The orchestra, which was founded more than 120 years ago, is regarded as one of the world's most prestigious. Britain's Simon Rattle is its principal conductor.
"We can rule out a total write-off of the Philharmonie," fire brigade spokesman Jens-Peter Wilke told n-tv television. "But the building is obviously in danger. We're doing all we can to rescue this important cultural site in Berlin."
The area surrounding the building has been cordoned off.
A spokeswoman for the orchestra said a news conference about the fire would be held at 1430 GMT.
the spatial, structural, and material expression is uniquely matched to the program. it was a renegade move in the era of the functional, and it was handled with a skill and an attention to detail that's astounding. scharoun accomplished some amazing things given when this was constructed and it has remained just as exciting a project to visit - still possessing the ability to amaze even 40+ years later.
and an acknowledged landmark of berlin, ep.
i can't imagine getting excited about ANY architecture if you can't at least acknowledge that this one is pretty great.
Ive heard about the building and the Berlin Philharmonic is a nobel endevour however Ive spent some time this afternoon checking out the building online and I have to say - I still dont see whats so interesting about it except the time period it was done in. That said for it's renegade style - its still ugly.
Fire at Berlin Philharmonic
BERLIN, May 20 (Reuters) - Scores of firefighters battled a blaze at the home of the Berlin Philharmonic orchestra on Tuesday.
Around 170 firefighters and more than 30 vehicles were at the scene trying to extinguish the fire which broke out during rehearsals open to the public, a fire brigade spokesman said.
Television footage showed a pall of smoke billowing from the roof of the building, a controversial design by Hans Scharoun that was completed in 1963 and renowned for its acoustics.
Musicians and visitors to the yellow Philharmonic building near the city centre had escaped and were no longer in danger, he said. There were no reports of injuries.
"The fight is continuing," the spokesman said. "I can't yet say what caused it. We're in the process of opening the roof from above so we can get to the source of the blaze better."
The orchestra, which was founded more than 120 years ago, is regarded as one of the world's most prestigious. Britain's Simon Rattle is its principal conductor.
"We can rule out a total write-off of the Philharmonie," fire brigade spokesman Jens-Peter Wilke told n-tv television. "But the building is obviously in danger. We're doing all we can to rescue this important cultural site in Berlin."
The area surrounding the building has been cordoned off.
A spokeswoman for the orchestra said a news conference about the fire would be held at 1430 GMT.
oh man, that's tragic. probably one of the few places in to watch a world class orchestra for just a few euros.
Tragic indeed. I love Scharoun. So sad.
yeah, i think i spent a week at his staatsbibliothek in berlin...
whoops...
Tragic indeed, the Philharmonie is an amazing building by a great architect -- I really hope its salvageable...
Whats so great about that building?
the spatial, structural, and material expression is uniquely matched to the program. it was a renegade move in the era of the functional, and it was handled with a skill and an attention to detail that's astounding. scharoun accomplished some amazing things given when this was constructed and it has remained just as exciting a project to visit - still possessing the ability to amaze even 40+ years later.
and an acknowledged landmark of berlin, ep.
i can't imagine getting excited about ANY architecture if you can't at least acknowledge that this one is pretty great.
i was outside the building and didn't manage to enter and see a concert since it's closed that day
it's probably the concert hall with extraordinarily the best acoustic quality among all counterparts of its time
Ive heard about the building and the Berlin Philharmonic is a nobel endevour however Ive spent some time this afternoon checking out the building online and I have to say - I still dont see whats so interesting about it except the time period it was done in. That said for it's renegade style - its still ugly.
between this and templehof, berlin may be no more...
i assume they'll fix it, right?
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