Sound house: Walk-in instrument in the middle of nature
It's a house and it's an instrument at the same time. The sound house in Toggenburg will be built as a walk-in sound body with hollow walls and sound holes - its structure will resemble the sound box of a violin. From 2025 it should be open to musicians, choirs, companies and all other interested parties.
At the Schwendisee in Toggenburg, a magical new building will be built between protected raised bogs: the so-called sound house, built as a walk-in sound box made of local wood, similar to the sound box of a violin. The aim is to create a house for the sound that itself becomes an instrument and resonance space, with acoustics that do not yet exist in this form.
It is intended to address and attract very different target groups. On the one hand, it is intended to attract musicians, choirs and orchestras for rehearsals, courses and symposia. It should be a special place for practicing and singing. On the other hand, it will develop into a place for events, concerts and performances. It also wants to give companies, clubs, schools and other organizations space for their events and represent an attractive point of attraction for those interested in architecture and hikers.
The sound house is to become the heart and architectural center of the tourist area around the Schwendisee. The President of the Foundation Council of Klangwelt Toggenburg said: “From the time the Klanghaus is put into operation, a functioning operation with a successful cultural and tourist offer should be ensured. This includes infrastructural, organizational, economic and content-related aspects that combine the needs of our guests and providers into a coherent ‹ecosystem of sound campus›. " The Toggenburg Sound World wants to establish a leading sound and resonance destination in Toggenburg.
The Toggenburg Sound House was designed by the architect Marcel Meili, who died in 2019. In the meantime, the implementation of the project has been entrusted to the architect Astrid Staufer, who developed the sound house in 2010 in contractual collaboration with Marcel Meili.
The former Hotel Seegüetli currently stands where the Klanghaus will be built. The canton plans to demolish it in the coming year. Today's street is currently being relocated. According to the current schedule, the sound house should be completed in autumn / winter 2024. In spring 2025, the canton of St. Gallen and the Toggenburg Sound World Foundation want to jointly open the unique wooden structure.