Thanks to the design wizardry of Sou Fujimoto, Budapest will have a new crowning architectural jewel by the end of 2021: the Hungarian House of Music.

Part of the Liget Budapest Project, an ambitious urban initiative to revitalize the 300-acre City Park with “cultural content,” the Hungarian House of Music comprises almost 97,000 square feet and three floors.
“It is incredibly inspiring to work in one of the world’s first public parks, and the task of designing the building was especially exciting since we not only created an edifice but also brought the park experience into the building,” says Fujimoto.

Of the distinctive circular roof, Fujimoto says it was mean to be a “visual representation of the vibration of sound: the wave.” “There are no right angles in the roof structure, almost no two elements that are the same,” he explains. “It is all unique and the surface is punctured by close to 100 individually designed holes for the trees of the park to emerge through.”

Fujimoto also designed melodiously functional lightwells to accommodate those living boughs. They “channel the light right down to the lowest levels, thus helping to illuminate the interiors and create a unique ambience,” he adds.
The architect also wanted to be pitch-perfect in terms of the environmental impact of his design. To that end, the building is supplied with renewable geothermic energy via 120 heat pumps installed 300 ...