The Palma Music Box could be a reality in just two years. And it is that a total of 15 companies choose to be awarded the project, with a budget of 7.8 million euros. This new infrastructure will be built on Carrer Brotad (Polígono de Llevant). Once built, it will be the new headquarters of the Balearic Islands Symphony Orchestra Foundation.
The next step will be the resolution of this public tender. Once the project is awarded, the winning company will have a period of 22 months to complete the execution of the Palma Music Box. The manager of the Fundació Orquestra Simfònica Illes Balears, Pere Malondra, assures that so far “there have not been any notes or complaints in relation to the project or the bases. It is a sign that things have been done very well. When you tender a project as important as this, any defect, when it comes to the public administration, slows things down a lot “.
With the deadlines set, Malondra trusts that “in the first half of March the award will be made to the construction company and we estimate that more or less in May or June 2023 the work can be finished and the opening concert can be held.”
Project of the future Music Box. Photo: GOIB.
The future headquarters of the Balearic Islands Symphony Orchestra Foundation will host both the Orchestra’s rehearsals and concerts. But also cultural events, with the commitment to generate activities to encourage the participation of the people of the neighborhood and the musical groups of the city.
So far, “the fact of not having headquarters has many drawbacks,” explains Malondra. “It is a discomfort and an expense in rentals, etc. The Music Box will allow us to plan the concerts without depending on other rooms, which gives the orchestra greater autonomy. You have the option of doing extraordinary concerts, seasonal concerts on consecutive days to cover all the public and subscribers “.
The Music Box will have a space in which a very detailed acoustic study has been made to give the ideal conditions for the orchestra. According to Malondra, “that fact alone is a very important leap.” In addition, he continues, “not having your own headquarters is not normal in Spain. Citizens will benefit from access, in an easy way, to the orchestra. Concerts will increase, especially family members and schoolchildren. Because, by being part of the public administration, we have that debt which is to make known both the classics and the Balearic composers “.
The new Palma Music Box
The Caja de Música building will be located on Carrer de Brotad in Palma. It is a lot granted by the City Council. It will have three different blocks: a central nave with a main room for the orchestra’s performances; a lateral nave for the rehearsal and study area for the musicians and dressing rooms, and a third nave where there will be the administration and archive area.
The construction of the Music Box will mean for the Symphony Orchestra to finally have a stable headquarters suitable for its daily activity. According to the OSIB itself, and constitutes an important milestone for the Balearic Islands to be a benchmark for the international dissemination of cultural attraction linked to tourism.
Environmental and social criteria
The authorities will take into account the inclusion of environmental and social criteria in the proposals submitted. Companies that employ people with difficulties in accessing work will also obtain more points. And those that include, as quality criteria, training courses for all workers.
Leave A Comment