The Royal Northern College of Music is a leading international conservatoire, music college and performance venue located in the heart of Manchester.
Buttress was appointed to deliver a number of phases of work for the college, underpinned by a strategy to increase capacity and improve the performance of existing buildings, adding to its offering with high-quality modern facilities.
Refurbishment and adaptation
Our first project looked at the original building, primarily used for teaching, practice and music rehearsal space for individuals through to orchestras. Our involvement saw the creation of 25 bespoke practice rooms – including a replica orchestral stage and smaller individual studios – forming the core of the project.
Constructed using the same principles as recording studios, these rooms are highly insulated steel boxes which float independently from any connecting structures to reduce sound transmission. A new library and archival storage space were also created to complement the teaching accommodation.
The new accommodation is accessed through a triple-height entrance pavilion that links the new wing to the main building with a 15m glazed bridge on the second floor and level access on the ground floor. This glazed link provides a central entrance, reception and circulation hub for the college and also functions as a congregation and exhibition space during festivals and open days.
The box office was also relocated into the new entrance space as a more legible entry point for public audiences.
Concorde Bar
Our second project for the Royal Northern College of Music saw the extension and refurbishment of the restaurant and bar facilities for students and concert-goers, as well as the creation of new teaching and conference facilities.
Public areas of the 1971 brutalist building were transformed into contemporary light-filled, warm and expressive spaces. Free-floating curved elements, lit from behind, define the spaces and express the new accommodation as layers inserted into the double-height space.
Oxford Road Wing
Our latest project with the college is the new Oxford Road Wing, a significant extension that fronts one of Manchester's main arterial routes and fulfils a number of roles for the college.
The new building includes various rehearsal studios including two double-height orchestral rehearsal spaces, 17 practice rooms accommodating groups of up to four students, and a number of general teaching rooms. The building also houses the senior management administration suite, as well as the headquarters for the Manchester Camerata Chamber Orchestra.
The studios are fitted with acoustically diffusing ceilings and walls, providing both high levels of sound insulation and areas of fixed acoustic absorption, as well as motorised sound absorption that allows reverberation to be controlled.
Where the wing faces Oxford Road, an acoustic buffer zone has been created. Designed with a glazed double layer, the new wing offers a glimpse into the rehearsal rooms within, allowing the college to increase the visibility of its activities as a leading international conservatoire and successful arts centre.
Image credits
© Daniel Hopkinson
Andy Avery
Andy leads Buttress' residential and regeneration team and has the rare ability to cut through to the heart of complex issues to find a solution.
Andy graduated from the Oxford School of Architecture in 1986 with honours in both architecture and urban design and has operated at board level within the profession since 1996.