Issue link: http://saihq.uberflip.com/i/1503691
sai-national.org • Summer 2023 23 on it. Philipp and I parted but still keep in touch. Surrounded on three sides by the Elbe River, Elbphilharmonie is an architectural magnificence. Although its foundation stone was laid in April 2007, Elphi was not completed until October 2016 (much later than 2010, as first predicted) at a cost of 866 million euros, well over the initial estimate of 241 million. When I asked Philipp about this huge investment (which was paid for partially by German taxes), he told me, "We can generally say Elbphilharmonie was over eleven times more expensive than intended, yet it is important to point out that the hall is profitable." The base with its brick façade was originally an eight-floor warehouse built in 1966. Today atop is a superstructure with an exterior that has about one thousand curved glass windows beneath the building's wavy roofline. The twenty-six story building is used both as a cultural and residential facility. Without cost for a panoramic view of the city, the public can take the curved escalator from the main entrance to the eighth-floor observation deck, arriving in two-and-a- half minutes. Nearby for concertgoers is the foyer of the Great Concert Hall. Surrounding the center where musicians perform are 2,100 plush seats for the audience. The geometric designs on the walls are actually 10,000 micro plates, shaped individually, that distribute the sound waves. I can attest that the resulting acoustics are marvelous. Concert tickets were difficult to obtain, but a German friend procured one for me on the night following my impromptu tour. Maestro Vladimir Spivakov led the Russian National Orchestra in works by composers of his homeland: Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, Schnittke, Shostakovich, and Khachaturian. Miłosz Magin was the Polish piano soloist. I have made another important decision — to return to Hamburg to hear a performance on Brahms's restored piano and also attend another concert in Elphi. Jayne I. Hanlin is an initiate of Alpha Omicron and current member of the St. Louis Alumnae chapter. Mrs. Hanlin, the sister of famed pianist Malcolm Frager, is the co-author of Learning Latin Through Mythology (Cambridge University Press, 1991). A Wld of Music To watch NDR livestream, visit: https://www.ndr.de/kultur/epg/stationndrkultur102-radioplayer.html Hanlin and German public Hanlin and German public radio host Philipp Cavert radio host Philipp Cavert on the auditorium podium. on the auditorium podium. Below left, instrument cases Below left, instrument cases which have traveled the world. which have traveled the world.