Suntory Hall

With ‘the world’s most beautiful sound’ as its concept, the design of the hall took into account not only opinions of leading conductors and musicians but also music lovers in various fields. The Main Hall was designed in the vineyard style, the first of its type in Japan.
As all 2,006 seats are directed towards the stage — just as terraces of vines are orientated towards the sun — the sound showers down on all seats like rays of sunlight. This design allows both musicians and audience to feel that they are in perfect harmony with each other and to be fully immersed in the musical experience both acoustically and visually.

Suntory Hall is in itself a magnificent instrument. In order to deliver the most beautiful pianissimo to every corner of the hall, vineyard style seating was chosen, and the form and materials of the floor, walls, ceiling and seats were carefully considered. Several acoustic tests were conducted using scale models to attain the ideal sound characteristics: 1) a rich, relaxing sound, 2) a stable sound supported by a profound bass, 3) a clear but sensitive sound, and 4) a three-dimensional sound. When fully seated, the reverberation time of the hall is 2.1 seconds in midrange frequencies.