This is the first performance complex in Asia devoted to pop music
By David Malone, Associate Editor
The Taipei Music Center (TMC) in Taiwan is a $3.5 billion complex that is designed for and dedicated to the celebration, production, and performance of Taiwan’s pop music. The multi-venue facility is the first performance complex in Asia solely devoted to pop music.
The Reiser + Umemoto-designed facility comprises several performance venues, including three for live concerts, an outdoor performance space with a seating capacity of 3,000, and the Performance Hall, a fan-shaped building with a seating capacity of 5,000. The TMC also includes production facilities to complement its performance spaces. Pop Culture Music Hall, dubbed The Cube, celebrates the history of Taiwan’s music industry and contains a museum of music, research archives, and lecture facilities.
See Also: Chicago’s newest library branch preserves the old and ushers in the new
As part of a cultural urbanism approach to the post-industrial revival of Taipei’s Nangang district, the complex will include a new elevated public ground and a pedestrian zone that joins the major sites that are currently divided by Civic Boulevard. In order to make the TMC an attraction completely independent to its performance schedule, a series of shops, markets, cafes, and restaurants are also included in the design.
In addition to Reiser + Umemoto, the build team includes a theater and acoustics team from Arup Associates, and Fei and Cheng, a Taipei architecture firm. The TMC is scheduled for a June 2019 opening.