GMC Construction Update

The Green Music Center Concert Hall is nearing completion. Several musicians from the Santa Rosa Symphony have had an opportunity to play on the stage and have found the experience to be excellent.


(pictured: cellist Laura McLellan, violinist Kathy Marshall and Clarinetist Roy Zajac).

Music Director/Conductor Bruno Ferrandis of the Santa Rosa Symphony (above right), said in a recent Press Democrat article, "You see the sound with a magnifier. I have been roaming all over the hall, and you get the same good sound. The attacks are phenomenal.”

Work remains on the lobby which, once complete, will have limestone floors, a grand staircase, elevator, and a special commission large art piece. The lobby’s high glass windows offer stunning views into the 100-foot square courtyard which can be used as a reception area. A donor wall in the lobby will express appreciation to contributors of $5,000 or more. To date, more than 1,500 individuals have played a part in the vision of the Green Music Center.

Cedar and stonework highlight the exterior of the west and south sides of the concert hall. An outdoor balcony on the south end (above the paneled-wall that opens) is finished and will offer visitors a spectacular view before and after performances.
The University continues its fundraising campaign for chairs, theatrical lighting, a sound and audio/visual system, and completion of the lobby.

Music Education
The Music Education building has been open and functioning for a full semester. Entering the hall, the ear will key into music emanating from the one or more of the seven practice rooms; it might be piano, saxophone, vocals or violins but whatever the instrument, the building resonates with music. In the always bustling lounge on the second floor of the building, students can be found studying, writing music, in deep academic discussion with their classmates or just spending a few minutes visiting with friends or faculty.

Schroeder’s Recital Hall
Once complete, Schroeder's will be very much like a European cathedral, with a high ceiling and slightly-curved walls. It was conceived and designed for choral music with a variable acoustic system, but can also accommodate regular university classes. The Brombaugh Tracker Organ—a rare and important find for Schroeder's—will grace the wall in a balcony built just for it at the stage end of the hall. Currently being used (in a church) by the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY, it will be disassembled, shipped and reassembled when the time is just right. The rooms connecting Schroeder’s with Music Education Hall are in the process of completion and include ensemble and practice rooms.

Hospitality Center
Finishing work continues on the Hospitality Center and Executive Conference Center, designed to be a contemporary and elegant space for dining and special events. They are expected to open in late summer or early fall. There is no plan to open the GMC as a restaurant at this time. The Hospitality Center and Executive Conference Center will serve as a special event and meeting facility for campus and non-campus groups. The dining room will also serve as food, beverage and club facility when performances are being held on the GMC lawn or quadrangle. The exterior patio features a water feature, fire pits, an arbor overhead that incorporates heaters for those cool evenings, trees and landscaping.

Santa Rosa Symphony League Founders Room
Because of significant donations to the Green Music Center from members of the Santa Rosa Symphony League, a large ensemble room in the Hospitality Center will be named the “Santa Rosa Symphony League Founders Room.” The room, which has double walls and other acoustic design features, will be used for entertaining by the Santa Rosa Symphony when it is performing, or as a musician's lounge. At other times, it can be used as a student rehearsal space or meeting room. A gift shop is planned for the area next to the Founder’s Room.

WALKING TOURS OF THE GREEN MUSIC CENTER COMPLEX ARE OFFERED BY THE UNIVERSITY ON A REGULAR BASIS. PLEASE CALL 707-664-2158 FOR TOUR INFORMATION.