Tennessee’s chapter of the American Institute of Architects has awarded the Natalie L. Haslam Music Center with the second-highest design honor in the state.
The music center was given the merit award for new construction by AIA Tennessee for its highly technical design built with limited funding. An out-of-state jury reviewed the building and granted it the award for its handsome interiors, detailed spaces, and natural light. The jury also acknowledged the building’s technical demands and challenging campus location. The music center was designed to LEED Silver level certification pending approval from the US Green Building Council by meeting certain sustainability criteria.
AIA Tennessee is a professional architecture society that educates citizens on the significant role architects play in determining the quality of life in Tennessee. It bestows design awards annually to bring public attention to outstanding examples of architecture and honor work designed by AIA Tennessee members. The music building was nominated for the award by the architects who designed it, Barber McMurry architects and Blankenship and Partners.
The four-floor, 123,000-square-foot facility houses eight technology-enhanced classrooms; fifty-six practice rooms; fifty-seven performance studios/academic offices; an organ studio; the 412-seat Sandra G. Powell Recital Hall; the George F. DeVine Music Library; a recording/mixing lab; computer, electronic music, and piano labs; and an academic tutoring center.
The building is energy efficient and is designed to reduce energy consumption. Colored portions of the glass, while part of the aesthetic design of the exterior, are also coated with a ceramic pattern that reduces solar heat gain. The building conserves water by collecting and storing rain water in underground cisterns used to irrigate the site’s plants and lawns.
More information about AIA Tennessee is available online.
For more information on the Natalie L. Haslam Music Center, visit the website.
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C O N T A C T :
Lola Alapo (865-974-3993, lola.alapo@tennessee.edu)