“The Anchorage Symphony’s first concert of the 2014-15 season will likely draw oohs from the audience before a single note gets played. Patrons heading for their seats will see an impressive new addition to Atwood Hall,” the $1.7 million Diva acoustic shell, writes Mike Dunham in Friday’s (9/26) Alaska Dispatch News. “Instead of the plain, tan, ill-fitting acoustic shell that has been positioned behind the orchestra for the past 25 years, elegant maple walls will frame three sides of the stage…. The Saturday, Sept. 27, concert will be the public’s first chance to hear what the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts has gotten for its investment…. ‘There was a facility assessment (for the ACPA) four years ago,’ said Scott Pfeiffer of Threshold, an acoustic analysis company based in Chicago. ‘There was a long list of recommended improvements and the shell was the most dire need.’ The Diva shell was built by the Wenger Corporation of Owatonna, Minnesota.… Kathryn Hoffer, the longtime concertmaster of the ASO, was among those smiling as she put her violin back in its case. ‘I like it,’ she said. ‘I’ve been wanting to play in a hall like this my whole life.’ ”
Posted September 29, 2014
