Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center
Construction

Address	Dallas Arts District Dallas
Coordinates	32°47′23″N 96°47′55″W / 32.789768°N 96.798637°W / 32.789768; -96.798637
Owner	City of Dallas Office of Cultural Affairs
Operator	Dallas Symphony Association
Type	Concert Hall
Capacity	2,062
Opened	1989
Architect	I.M. Pei

The Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center is a famous concert hall in Dallas, Texas, USA. It is located in the city's Arts District. Many people consider it one of the best orchestra halls in the world.

The building was designed by the famous architect I.M. Pei. An expert in sound, Russell Johnson, also helped design the hall's amazing sound. The center first opened its doors in September 1989.

The building is named after Morton Meyerson. He was a leader who worked for 10 years to create a special home for the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. In 1986, the new center was named in his honor. This happened after H. Ross Perot gave a large donation for the naming rights.

Today, the Meyerson Symphony Center is the main home for the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and the Dallas Symphony Chorus. It also hosts the Dallas Wind Symphony and other musical groups. The City of Dallas owns the center. The Dallas Symphony Association manages it.

Building Design and Style
- The Lay Family Organ
- How the Hall Sounds So Good
Quick Facts and Figures
Images for kids
See also

Building Design and Style

The outside of the Meyerson Symphony Center has a round shape. It is made of glass and metal. This design looks very different from the main concert hall inside. The architect, I.M. Pei, wanted to create a contrast.

The inside of the hall is more traditional. Pei explained that he wanted the building to fit the classical music played there. Even so, he added curved shapes to the outside. This made the building feel exciting and unique.

The Lay Family Organ

The Meyerson Symphony Center is also home to a huge organ. It is called the Lay Family Concert Organ. This organ has 4,535 pipes! It is a very special instrument.

Charles Fisk dreamed of building such a large concert organ. Sadly, he passed away before it was finished. The organ was built in 1991. It is known for its beautiful sound. The first performance on the organ was in September 1992.

How the Hall Sounds So Good

The main concert hall, called the Eugene McDermott Concert Hall, was designed for perfect sound. Experts made sure the sound reflects well throughout the room. They used a special "reverse fan" shape for the back of the hall.

The hall has 74 heavy concrete doors around the top. Each door weighs about 2.5 tons! These doors can open or close to change how long sounds echo. There are also 56 special curtains that help control sound. Above the stage, there are large panels weighing over 42 tons. These panels can move up, down, or tilt. They help direct the sound to everyone in the audience.

This careful design helps the Meyerson Symphony Center sound as good as other famous concert halls. These include the Vienna Musikverein and the Amsterdam Concertgebouw.

Quick Facts and Figures

The Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center is a big and impressive building. Here are some interesting facts about it:

It has 260,000 square feet (about 24,155 square meters) of space above ground.
There are 225,000 square feet (about 20,903 square meters) of space below ground.
It used 35,130 cubic yards (about 26,850 cubic meters) of concrete.
The building features 30,000 square feet (about 2,787 square meters) of Italian marble.
It has 22,000 pieces of Indiana limestone.
The Lay Family Organ has 4,535 pipes.
The main hall can seat 2,062 people.
The hall's ceiling is 85 feet (about 26 meters) high.
There are 74 concrete doors that control sound.
It has 56 special curtains for acoustics.
The building has 50 restrooms.
There are 4 private suites for meetings or small concerts.