On A Positive Note: Carnegie Music Hall continues to undergo historic renovation
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - One of the most opulent, historic, and storied places in Pittsburgh is in the midst of a major renovation project that is equally historic.
The Carnegie Music Hall is in phase one of the project. It was in 1895 that Andrew Carnegie proclaimed that he wanted the music hall to be the center of Pittsburgh's musical scene. He considered it a gift to the people of the city. And it has delighted audiences for 128 years.
Melissa Simonetti, Director of Construction And Project Management, said there is one overarching goal.
"Preserve as much of that as possible, so behind me, you see some of the artwork. And you can see the gold leaf right here, and here you have one of the decorative panels."
Those panels are being painstakingly cleaned with cotton swabs and vinegar. And a team of in-house paleontologists is making casts of the ornate light sconces, just like they do with dinosaur bones, in case of the fixtures breaks.
The President and CEO of Carnegie Museums said, "When people designed music halls in that period, they were very conscious of acoustics, and this is one of the most acoustically perfect concert halls you will find anywhere."
But Knapp acknowledges, "The only problem is it's never been air-conditioned for those 128 years. It was cooled in 1905, which was by a state-of-the-art giant wooden fan, which I often say belongs in a museum, but not as part of the infrastructure, just as an exhibition perhaps."
The restoration contractor is Volpatt Construction, known for its many projects renovating historic structures around Pittsburgh. Its team is focusing on what it calls a "dumpster-last" philosophy, reusing and recycling as many of the elements as possible. For example, all the seats are being replaced and upgraded.
"Donors are taking seats as souvenirs, and we harvested fabric from the seats, and we're taking the fabric used to fix the seats and donating that to the Green Voice of Pittsburgh. They have an event called Ecolution. They're going to have a fashion designer make a dress out of the fabric," said Michael Volpatt.
"And I think, at the end of the day, you're going to see a beautiful space that looks a lot like it looked before, but it will be modern and updated."