An Open-Plan Music School Built From Concrete By Nikken Sekkei

Japanese architecture studio Nikken Sekkei designed a concrete campus lined with oak wood to house Tokyo’s Toho Gakuen School of Music. Guided by the imperative of acoustic quality, the building is far removed from traditional campus design, with common areas built to encourage students to practice in a lively, communal setting. In the basement, independent lesson rooms allow students a more discreet space to practice in. The architects describe the layout of the college as “aligned along a central corridor in a jail-like manner”. The project won a World Architecture Award in 2015.

All images © Harunori Noda