Old Choral Hall sings again

When the building wrap came off the front of Old Choral Hall in August it revealed a ‘face’ that hadn’t been seen for almost a century.

The landmark building’s portico – the covered structure at its Symonds Street entrance – had been reinstated, giving the building back its original public face, which had been missing since its first portico was removed following the 1931 Napier earthquake.

The gleaming new portico is more than a pretty face; it will play a crucial role in helping the building withstand any future earthquakes, with steel hidden within its columns now providing bracing for the building’s façade.

The seismically strengthened and refurbished building was blessed on 1 December and will be officially opened by Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage and alumnus Hon Paul Goldsmith on 5 December.

Project design began in 2019, with work significantly disrupted in the early stages by Covid-19 lockdowns. In total, 1,304 contractors have spent 370,000 hours working on site and more than 50 consultants have been involved.

Margaret Waller, project manager with Campus Environment, says the building’s interior, formerly a “rabbit warren” of internal offices constructed over several decades, has been reconfigured to open up many spaces. This has included removing a mezzanine floor to restore the full height in the building’s foyer, as it was when it was originally used as a choral hall.

New services, such as air conditioning, sprinklers and a lift, have also been installed in the building, which now contains 4,000sqm of floor space, including offices for students and staff and two 100-seat lecture theatres.

The building is listed as a Category 1 heritage place – the highest level of heritage recognition – and evidence of the building’s past has been retained as part of the refurbishment.

One of the most striking examples is a previously undiscovered well, which has been archaeologically documented and covered over with a clear floor panel so this unique piece of history remains visible.

Given the position of the well, Margaret says its construction could even pre-date the construction of the choral hall itself.

“It may even relate to the construction period of the [adjacent] Albert Barracks Wall and internal buildings,” she says, “with the well providing essential water for building mortar and any encampment of labourers providing the workforce for the barracks’ construction.”

One of Margaret’s favourite features of the refurbishment is another previously hidden treasure: a skylight, which was found above the original entry steps to the side of the hall. It has now been repurposed as a ceiling feature with lighting above.

“No one knew it was there, and it has been brought back to life in an imaginative way.”

Reclaiming the front foyer as a double height space “is another wow moment”, she adds.

And in a fitting touch, singers from the building’s first owners, the Auckland Choral Society, will perform in the foyer on opening day – allowing the space to sing again.

Caitlin Sykes