The City Casino, a public meeting and concert hall, appeared in Basel as early as 1826. Towards the end of the century, a special Music Hall (1876) was added to it, still distinguished by excellent acoustics, and in 1905 a chamber hall was added to it. In 1939, the original casino building was replaced with a new one, in the spirit of rational and traditional architecture.
By the beginning of the 21st century, this complex required not only restoration, but also reconstruction - for the sake of more efficient use, the convenience of musicians and spectators. An architectural competition was held, which involved the demolition of the 1939 building. The winner
Zaha Hadid became Zaha Hadid (and HdM was then lost to her), but even after reworking in order to reduce the size, its version seemed too large and aggressive to the Basel people, and in 2007 they rejected it in a plebiscite, mandatory in Switzerland for large state projects, with a majority of votes 2/3.
After that, the management of the "City Casino" turned to the main architects of Basel, Herzog & de Meuron, who carried out an urban planning study, noting the importance of the position of the building next to one of the main squares and the former monastery church, which now houses the historical museum, and the complete lack of development of these connections - up to to the point that the not too interesting annex of 1939 occupies a leading place both on the square and in the casino complex.
However, the reconstruction of the Music Hall, which was then entrusted to HdM, hardly affected this building: it houses the Festzal, which is used for conferences, concerts and banquets and will remain unchanged for now.
But the Music Hall in the neo-baroque style was restored and expanded. Its rear facade facing the church was duplicated with a new one, repeating its historical appearance: its base is made of concrete, outside there is a wooden ventilated facade, disguised as plastered stone (
blueprints).
Stairs and a foyer were placed between the original and the modern wall. There, the combination of the old and the new is even more complicated. In the foyer, one of the longitudinal walls is the former facade of the Music Hall, and the second, new one, completely repeats its decor. The ends are mirrored to visually expand the space, and also to support the tradition of theaters of past centuries, where mirrors played an important role. The architects believe that they also continued the line of the 19th century in that they "increased the artificiality of form, material and color."
The staircases with niche-loggias, where spectators can relax, are upholstered in dark red brocade wallpaper - an exact repetition of the original, 1876. The parquet with a curved pattern, reminiscent of wallpaper, was created especially for the renovation. Parrucca LED lamps were also designed by Herzog & de Meuron themselves - this is also an allusion - to the luxurious theater chandeliers of the 19th century.
The 929-seat Music Hall itself was renovated at the time of its first reconstruction in 1905, when it was richly decorated. The original color scheme was restored, the embedded windows in the walls and ceilings were opened, the balcony received a smaller slope (it was bent down to make a transition to the 1939 building).
The Hans Huber Chamber Hall was also restored to its original color, doors and windows were restored. The restoration encompassed the dressing rooms and the performer's foyer. Additional rooms for musicians were located on the top floor of the 1939 building.
