news
- 24.06.2005
- / realizations
Czech Museum of Music
The new exposition of Czech Museum of Music, which belongs to the collection of National Museum in Prague, is located in the former baroque St. Magdalena church in Malá Strana. Unusual connection of baroque church architecture with classicist utility rebuilding and a newly finished reconstruction offer an impressive combination of monumentality and detail. Especially the assembly hall is impressive with its bulk, diversification, usage of daily light and connection with the exterior.
The basis of the exposition of Czech Museum of Music is a rich collection of musical instruments.
The new exposition takes up approximately 700 m2 of the first floor. With respect to the possibilities of space, only a fragment of the collection of objects is exhibited. The exposition of Czech Museum of Music was open in November 2004.
The author of reconstruction of the building was studio TŠ, author of lay-out of exposition is studio g.l. architects. The basic principle of the lay-out of exposition was an expressive scenic conception with a number of newly inserted interior elements that serve for the exposition of exhibits or as a thematic completion of the space of exposition. Next to free installation in space, many show-cases with atypical forms were used in the exposition. As for proportions, exhibits range from capacious keyboard instruments to relatively tiny wind instruments.
Conception of lighting
The usage of daily light was excluded after a few introductory discussions about the extent of usage of daily light with regard to its dynamic character, large areas of windows, possible problems with adaptation glare and reflection. Exceptions being five historical halls where daylight was used in a dimmed form and where a partial view into the exterior visually connects the exposition with the environment of Malá Strana and the view of St. Nicholas church.
Elimination of daylight was in one part of exhibitory spaces solved with non-transparent glass walls. In the second part, textile walls with printed musical motives were used. Design of artificial lighting drew on the following principles:
- possibility of lighting of exhibits freely located in space and in show-cases;
- finding of optimum proportion between the lighting of exhibits and lighting of space;
- bringing of adequate dynamic into the exposition that would make it more lively;
- lighting has to react on the visitor;
- minimisation of direct glare by lighting fittings and reflections from show-cases;
- minimisation of all disturbing light effects
- give life to the exposition in selected parts by means of colour accent.
Description of lighting set
The system of exhibitory lighting consists of two separate lighting sets that are directed by a control system. Used light gears enable a fluent regulation of light flow and used lighting fittings can be furnished with any necessary accessories (dimmers, filters, Fresnel lens). The first lighting set is a moulding system placed at the level of recessed ceiling. The moulding system has three separate circuits in every room:
cicuit no. 1 - switched on centrally, fixed level 100%;
cicuit no. 2 - switched on by local moving sensor, fixed level 100%;
cicuit no. 3 - switched on by local moving sensor, two continuous adjustable levels 0-100%.
Moving sensor located in the area of feeding termination of moulding system makes it possible for the lighting fitting to react on the visitor. In terms of moulding system, two basic types of lighting fittings are used. Lighting fittings Le Perroquet for 50 W metal-halide lamps with diachronic reflector are determined for directional lighting. Lighting fittings enable an individual continuous regulation 0-100%. These lighting fittings are produced for lighting of freely installed exhibits, respectively for extra-lighting of exhibits in show-cases.
The second lighting set is the set that is inbuilt in show-cases. It differs according to the type of show-case.
There are four types of show-cases used in the exposition: console (space), hall-stand, wall and desk type. Each type appears in the exposition usually in several proportional modifications. Just like the first lighting set, the set in show-cases is controlled by means of a control system. Desk show-case and console show-case are lightened by a system of optical cables.
Due to the fact that the lighting set had to be installed on the spot and made to measure, plastic optical cables were used where the manner of installation is, compared to glass optical cables, easier. Optical cables are fed from projectors that are furnished with a halogen bulb 100 W placed in the base of the show-case. Each projector has a ventilator and it is fed by two transformers. One transformer feeds the ventilator, the second feeds a halogen bulb and it can be furnished with a dimmer (DALI).
The control system serves for two purposes. If there is no visitor in the room, the level of illuminance decreases to 30%. Thanks to this, operational expenses are lower and the time of the functioning of bulbs is prolonged. When the visitor enters the room, the level of illuminance in show-cases increases continuously up to the level of 90%. Due to the control of the upper limit of feeding tension, the lifetime of light source is again extended.
Wall show-cases are made for voluminous exhibits and they are 3 m high. Due to the fact that larger light flows are needed and the exhibits have low sensitivity to damage by light radiation, atypical fluorescent lighting fittings placed at the level of front frame of show-case above upper glass were used. Lighting fittings are furnished with dimmable electronic ballasts. If there is no visitor in the hall, show-cases are dimmed down to 30%, in case a visitor comes, the level increases up to 70%.
The last show-case type, the wall show-case, is characterized by its little depth and the setting of lighting system inside is quite complicated due to small distances between exhibits and a possible place for fastening of the lighting system. Due to the fact that the show-case is made of glass only, the system has to be very subtle. That is why the system with light sources LED placed in a subtle aluminium L-profile around the perimeter of show-case was selected. Aluminium profile serves for the mounting of the lighting system and also as a screen for reduction of glare. LED system is fed by a dimmable source (DALI).
Czech Museum of Music: Karmelitská street no. 2/4, Prague 1;
Reconstruction of property: Ing. arch. Tomáš Šantavý, studio TŠ;
Design of exposition: Ing. arch. Vlastimil Vagaday, g.l. architects;
Design of multimedia part: Milan Cais, MgA;
Design of lighting: Petr Žák, Etna, Ltd.;
Lighting fittings: iGuzzini, Crescent, SAAS, Halla;
Control system: Ing. Petr Kadlec, ApolloArt;
Show-cases: František Záhrobský, Revyko.
