The Building
The First Church of Christ Scientist was built in 1936 by Otto Rudolf Salvisberg. Prior to its conversion, it was largely in its original condition and is a listed building.
In recent years, due to a rapidly shrinking congregation, the building has become largely redundant and has been converted into a rehearsal and office space for the Sinfonieorchester Basel.
The structural measures included improved soundproofing of the surrounding area, acoustic adjustments to the main hall, a stage with new lighting and the installation of barrier-free sanitary facilities. In addition, the existing building components were adapted to current safety, fire protection and building services requirements, and earthquake stability was improved.
Developed through extensive options studies and dialogue with the heritage authorities, the interventions remain largely visible and are largely reversible.
In this way, the building was treated with the respect it deserves and can now be filled with cultural life and creativity thanks to its new use.
Conversion and partial renovation of a listed church:
Project planning, implementation: 2017–2020
Clients: Basel-Stadt Real Estate, Sinfonieorchester Basel
Architects: Beer Merz Architekten SIA BSA
Guided tours
Interested in a guided tour of our facilities?
Private tours (max. 25 people, approx. 20 min): CHF 250.–
Registration:
Greta Backhaus
+41 (0)61 205 00 98
g.backhaus@sinfonieorchesterbasel.ch
Rehearsal room and office of the Sinfonieorchester Basel
