The Columbus Symphony Orchestra has weathered its fair share of ups and downs over the decades, from near-bankruptcy to artistic triumphs. Now, the orchestra is embarking on its most ambitious project yet – a $275 million, state-of-the-art concert hall that promises to transform the city's cultural landscape. This bold move comes after years of financial struggles and a realization that their current home, the historic Ohio Theatre, no longer meets the orchestra's needs. As the symphony sets its sights on a new era, the community is both enthusiastic and skeptical, wondering if this grand endeavor can truly lift all boats in the local arts scene.

Unlocking the Symphony's Potential: A Transformative Concert Hall

Outgrowing the Ohio Theatre

The Columbus Symphony Orchestra has called the Ohio Theatre home for over 50 years, but the historic venue has long been a source of frustration for the musicians. Designed primarily for movies, the theatre's acoustics have never been ideal for orchestral performances, leaving the musicians feeling constrained and the audience disconnected from the music. As the orchestra's ambitions grew, the limitations of the Ohio Theatre became increasingly apparent."The few times that I've actually had the occasion to sit in the audience, I have been absolutely struck by the lack of presence that is felt from the audience," says Betsy Sturdevant, the orchestra's longtime principal bassoonist. "It's like you're in your house listening to a stereo system, and you turn the volume down really low so you can almost not hear the music."The orchestra's former associate conductor, Peter Stafford Wilson, echoes these sentiments, praising the Ohio Theatre as a "stunning room" but acknowledging its shortcomings for orchestral performances. "Acoustically, it was not the greatest," he says. "The low-end spectrum really disappeared. It was not a terribly focused sound. I think the biggest problem was 3,000 seats."

A Transformative Opportunity

The orchestra's financial struggles in the late 2000s, which saw the organization teetering on the brink of bankruptcy, ultimately paved the way for a transformative opportunity. In 2013, a chance performance at a new music center in Dubuque, Iowa, opened the orchestra's eyes to the possibilities of a purpose-built concert hall."We sounded like rock stars," Sturdevant recalls of the Dubuque performance, crediting the superior acoustics of the new venue. This experience planted the seeds for the symphony's future, inspiring local businessman and donor Joe Chlapaty to envision a similar world-class facility for his hometown orchestra."The plan was to eventually have a performance hall, and I said, 'Gosh, you've been talking about this forever,'" Chlapaty says. "I said, 'I'll give a significant gift if we can get this thing off the ground and moving.'"

Designing a 21st-Century Concert Hall

With Chlapaty's support and the orchestra's renewed ambition, the plans for a new concert hall began to take shape. The $275 million, 205,000-square-foot venue is envisioned as a sleek, modern facility anchored by a 1,600-seat performance space designed with acoustics as the top priority."The focus is the musical arts," says Betty Hill, director of the capital campaign. "There is no way to take a music hall and make it multi-purpose without destroying the reason you're putting it up, which is to make it acoustically perfect."The new hall will also include a smaller performance space and rooms for rehearsals, lessons, and other events, catering to the needs of the symphony and other local arts organizations. However, the current design does not accommodate the specific requirements of BalletMet, raising concerns about the venue's ability to serve the broader arts community.

Funding the Ambitious Project

Securing the necessary funding for the concert hall has been a significant challenge, with the orchestra facing skepticism from potential donors and the broader arts community. Chlapaty, who has committed $15 million to the project, expresses frustration at the slow pace of private giving, noting that some potential donors have expressed doubts about the orchestra's ability to pull off such a large-scale endeavor."We haven't received the type of major donor philanthropic support that I had hoped," Chlapaty says. "There has been skepticism. I've called on some of these people, and they say, 'Well, I'm not sure you can pull this off.'"The orchestra has managed to secure $20.5 million in state funding, but board chair Stephen Markovich acknowledges that the fundraising campaign will likely take longer than anticipated, necessitating an extension from the city on the June 2025 deadline for funding commitments.

Navigating Community Concerns

The concert hall project has also faced skepticism from some members of the local arts community, who feel they were left out of the planning process. Janet Chen, CEO of ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, says her group was not part of the early conversations, representing a "missed opportunity for a broader conversation amongst all of the performing arts colleagues."Christy Farnbauch, the executive director of The Contemporary Theatre of Ohio, expresses a desire for a more inclusive approach, suggesting that the city needs a "bigger conversation about what a building of that magnitude should look like and the way that it should support the residents of the city."The orchestra, however, remains steadfast in its vision for a dedicated music venue, arguing that compromising the hall's acoustic design to accommodate other art forms would undermine its purpose. "There is no way to take a music hall and make it multi-purpose without destroying the reason you're putting it up, which is to make it acoustically perfect," says former executive director Denise Rehg.

A Catalyst for the Arts Landscape

Despite the challenges, the orchestra's leadership believes the new concert hall has the potential to be a transformative catalyst for the city's arts scene. Chief Operating Officer Daniel Walshaw sees the hall as a "rising tide that lifts all boats," benefiting the entire arts community in the process.The orchestra's current music director, Rossen Milanov, also envisions the new venue as a means to expand the orchestra's reach and ambitions. "You could increase the number of permanent core musicians in the orchestra," Milanov says. "The other option is to keep the core the same and just add more weeks, because we are still not what we used to be."As the orchestra navigates the complexities of fundraising, community engagement, and design, the ultimate goal remains clear: to create a world-class concert hall that will elevate the Columbus Symphony Orchestra and inspire a new era of artistic excellence and community engagement.