Berliner Philharmonie aka: Berlin Philharmonic

The Berliner Philharmonie in Berlin-Tiergarten is one of the most important concert halls in Berlin. It is home to the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. It was built by the architect Hans Scharoun in the years 1960–1963.

It is a singular building, asymmetrical and tentlike, with a main concert hall in the form of a pentagon. The seating offers excellent positions from which to view the stage through the irregularly increasing height of the benches. The stage is at the center of the hall, providing an extraordinary atmosphere for both the artists and the viewers. The acoustics are excellent. On every seat the sound is nearly equally great. It is said that you can pick out individual voices or instruments even from a seat at the far end. The great hall has 2,440 seats, the smaller ‘Kammermusiksaal’ 1,180.

The building is located on Herbert-von-Karajan-Straße, named for the Philharmonic’s longest-serving principal conductor, in the Kulturforum area of Berlin not far from Potsdamer Platz. Also found in this area are the Neue Nationalgalerie, the Gemäldegalerie, and one of the two branches of the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin.