Strathmore (Maryland)

Strathmore is a cultural and artistic venue and institution in North Bethesda, Maryland, USA. Strathmore was founded in 1981 and consists of two venues: the Mansion and the Music Center.

The Strathmore arts complex is connected to the Grosvenor-Strathmore Washington Metro station via an elevated pedestrian walkway, the Carlton R. Sickles Memorial Sky Bridge, named after late Congressman Carlton R. Sickles. The complex is thus accessible for patrons coming from Washington, D.C., as well as the northern part of Montgomery County, Maryland via the Metro rail system.

Leadership and innovation

Under the leadership of President & CEO Eliot Pfanstiehl, Strathmore has welcomed more than 5,000 artists and 2 million guests at its signature exhibitions, concerts, teas, educational events and outdoor festivals since 1983. Highlights include hosting the first National Kaleidoscope Exhibition; developing a summer free outdoor concert series; world premiere of the Rhodes-Nadler Art Collection in the Strathmore art galleries; creating and launching the Washington Area Music Timeline Concert Series, 64 concerts celebrating local D.C. musicians; the opening of the world-class 1,976-seat Music Center at Strathmore in February 2005, described as “…the best place to hear an orchestra the Washington area has ever known” ["The Washington Post"] ; and producing the world premiere concert of "cELLAbration: A Tribute to Ella Jenkins".

Strathmore commissions new works of art and music, including world premieres of the musical compositions "Emergence: A Cicada Serenade" by David Kane, "Strathmore Sonata" by Garrison Hull; works by young Artist in Residence musicians and the commissioning of the sculpture "Little Temple" by Stefan Saal.

Performance and other facilities

* The Mansion at Strathmore is situated on eleven acres which surround the colonial revival mansion built in 1899 for the Oyster family, and sold to Charles Corby in 1908. [cite web |url=http://www.strathmore.org/aboutstrathmore/history.asp |title="About Us", from the official website] The Mansion houses small concerts, art exhibitions, the Strathmore Tea Room, and the Shop at Strathmore. This is the original Strathmore venue and it remained so for almost 25 years.

The Mansion features a 100-seat acoustically superb Dorothy M. and Maurice C. Shapiro Music room. This room hosts the Music in the Mansion series, highlighting performances of chamber music, vocal and instrumental recitals, jazz and folk music. Music lovers will be delighted by Strathmore’s 1850 Broadwood piano, restored in 1994. Each summer the music spills out onto the green with free outdoor concerts. The summer also brings in the Backyard Theater for Children every Thursday morning.

The art of Strathmore brings in thousands of visitors each year. With more than two dozen exhibitions each season from local artists and from collaborations with renowned museums, such as the Baltimore Museum. The Gudelsky Gallery Suite, located at the top of the grand staircase, was named after philanthropists, Homer and Martha Gudelsky. Supported by a generous donation from the Gudelsky Family Foundation, this gallery features four rooms with state-of-the-art, humidity-and light-controlled galleries. It is the only venue of its kind in Montgomery County. When you exit through the back of Strathmore, you will encounter an extensive and varied Sculpture Garden that winds through the 11 acres of Strathmore.

With its columned porticos, Palladian windows, graceful proportions and pristine hilltop setting, this beautiful Neo-Georgian mansion is an elegant reflection of the past. Opulent and imposing, created for country life in a gilded age, Strathmore was designed by Appleton P. Clark, Jr., and constructed in 1902 as a summer home for Captain and Mrs. James Oyster and their family. Beginning in 1908, the Oysters sold the residence and its 99 acres to Charles I. Corby and his wife, Hattie. It was used as a summer home until 1914 when it was remodeled by architect Charles Keene. After the modifications, the residence became the permanent abode for the Corby family. Mr. Corby died in 1926 after acquiring nearly convert|400|acre|km2 of surrounding land and maintaining a fully operational dairy farm and a private golf course. With the death of Mrs. Corby in 1941, the home was purchased by the Sisters of the Holy Cross in 1943 and became known as St. Angela Hall, serving as a convent and school for many years. Rumors persist that from 1941-1944, the mansion served as a residence and a temporary governmental headquarters for Manuel L. Quezon, President of the Commonwealth of the Philippines. However, there is no firm evidence to support this theory. In 1977, the Sisters of the Holy Cross sold the mansion to the American Speech and Hearing Association (ASHA) as a temporary headquarters. In 1979, Montgomery County purchased the property from ASHA for use as an Arts Center. On June 21, 1983, after major restoration of the facility, Strathmore opened its doors to the public. Today, Strathmore attracts visitors from Montgomery County and the Washington metropolitan area, as well as the wider region, to its varied exhibitions of art, its musical performances, and the still-lovely location on Captain Oyster’s Hill.

* The Music Center at Strathmore, which seats 1,976, is a concert hall and education center which opened in February 2005. It was funded by a combination of State of Maryland, Montgomery County and private corporate and local resources to provide a modern concert venue for a wide variety of musical events.

Offering world-class performing arts in a state-of-the-art facility, the opening marked a defining moment for arts and culture in the Washington, D.C. region. Anchored by the founding partners, Strathmore and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, resident artistic partners include the National Philharmonic, Washington Performing Arts Society, CityDance Ensemble, Maryland Classic Youth Orchestras, and Levine School of Music.

The venue presents over 150 performances a year and over 75 arts and music education classes each week.

Designed by William Rawn Associates Architects, Inc. of Boston along with [Grimm & Parker Architects] [http://www.gparch.com/portfolio.php?PID=28] of Bethesda, MD, acousticians Kirkegaard Associates of Chicago, and Theatre Projects Consultants of South Norwalk, Connecticut, the result is a critically acclaimed venue that Tim Smith from "The Baltimore Sun" proclaims a, “first class space for music-making.”

Design & AcousticsThe Music Center at Strathmore features a softly undulating roof that outlines the sloping form of the concert hall. Inspired by the rolling hills of the Strathmore grounds, the convert|190000|sqft|m2|sing=on building is nestled into the an 11 acre park-like setting.

The warm German limestone façade is punctuated by large glass walls, which bathe the building in brilliant light. A six-story, convert|64|ft|m|sing=on high glass wall in the Lockheed Martin Lobby features 402 panes of glass, and opens to the outdoor Trawick Terrace that overlooks the Strathmore campus.

The concert hall, designed in the traditional “shoebox” form of many distinguished international concert halls, incorporates soft curvaceous lines to enhance the intimacy of the space. The gracefully curved ceiling of the hall follows the rising and falling lines of the exterior roof, and the high ceiling at the rear of the hall slopes down to a lower ceiling above the stage. A sophisticated riser system optimizes stage conditions for the orchestra or a chorus, and can be easily removed to accommodate many forms of music, theater, and dance.

Above the stage, a mechanized canopy of 43 individually controlled acrylic panels can be adjusted to fine-tune sound for clarity and reverberation. Tunable sound-absorbing curtains behind the bronze grilling and banners in the ceiling can be deployed out of sight to dampen or enliven the sound. These acoustical adjustments enable sound technicians to accommodate a wide range of programming—from a solo recital to full symphony orchestra to amplified performances.

The interior finishes of the Concert Hall include convert|24000|sqft|m2 of maple wood floors, and convert|19000|sqft|m2 of custom white birch wall paneling, with red birch details. Custom design details include 700 bronze mesh wall panels, 250 alabaster art glass light fixtures, and maple wood and aubergine velour seats.

The Education Center, located at the opposite end of the building, features four expansive rehearsal spaces, including a dance studio with a sprung floor and two rehearsal rooms with convert|40|ft|m|sing=on high ceilings. This wing of the building also features a children’s music classroom, a small two-story rehearsal room and nine solo and small group practice spaces.

History

Strathmore, which began as a turn-of-the-century historic Mansion featuring small chamber performances and art exhibitions in 1983, developed its plans for the Music Center over 20 years ago. In 1985, Strathmore’s Board of Directors and President and CEO Eliot Pfanstiehl began discussions about the need for a larger educational and performance space. Approximately 11 years later, in 1996, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, under the leadership of former president John Gidwitz, expressed interest in creating a second home in Montgomery County, and joined Strathmore as a founding partner in a dream for the Music Center at Strathmore. With a positive marketing study and an excellent site in hand, the Music Center at Strathmore plan was strongly supported and led by Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan and Maryland Governor Parris N. Glendening.

The vision became a reality when, in 1998, the Montgomery County Council and the Maryland State Legislature approved matching capital support ($48 million each) for the Music Center at Strathmore. After the design team was selected in 2001, work began under the direction of the county.

The public-private partnership between Strathmore Hall Foundation, Inc., who assumes the day-to-day management and artistic programming of the Music Center and Mansion, along with the support of the public, and its elected leaders at the State and County levels, created one of the most significant buildings constructed in Montgomery County. Additionally, hundreds of generous individual and corporate donors stepped forward to help build, equip and sustain the operation of the Music Center, including $1 million donors Comcast, Discovery Communications, Inc., The Gazette / The Washington Post / Post Newsweek Media / Philip L. Graham Fund, J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation and Lockheed Martin.

With the creation of the Music Center at Strathmore, Montgomery County has redefined the character of the local arts community and ensured that future generations of area residents will grow up with the joy of wonderful music, dance, theater and art in their lives.

* Gudelsky Concert Pavilion and Gazebo, for outdoor performances.

* Outdoor Sculpture Garden.The grounds contain 23 commissioned and donated sculptures by various local and national artists, including works by Stefan Saal, Barton Rubinstein, Carol Gellner Levin, Foon Sham and Wendy Ross.

New SculpturesLocated on the Bou Family Terrace, Tetra Con Brio, a monumental sculpture of cast bronze, steel, and polished concrete, stands convert|12|ft|m tall and weighs 4,500 pounds. Created by California artist Roger W. Stoller, the commissioned work was generously underwritten by Kenneth and Phillip O’Brien in memory of their father, Ben O’Brien, founder of Music & Arts Centers.

Suspended above a three-level staircase and spanning convert|96|ft|m of open vertical space by the Discovery Channel foyer, New York artist Meryl Taradash’s The Music of Light is composed of shaped acrylic prisms, curved polished aluminum arcs, and reflected light. It is the focal point for thousands as they enter the Music Center.

See also

* List of concert halls

References

External links

* [http://www.strathmore.org/ Official website]