Project Description
The primary objective of the design of 7DrumCity is to create a series of distinct music practice and performance rooms that are linked by indoor and outdoor gathering spaces. A second and equally important functional objective of the design was to, where possible, gather the sound-heavy music rooms against the party wall of the existing 7DrumCity building to the South and organize quieter social and interstitial spaces against the party wall of the new residential development being built to the North. To construct this North-South differentiation of program, the original interior stair along the South party wall was rebuilt on the other side of the building to insulate the new residential development from the music vibrations where possible.
The building operates as both an active, community gathering space and a private refuge for individuals to focus in intimate lessons or practice sessions. The design of the building, like the nature of the music community, is at once collective and individual. It requires spaces at both the social scale and the individual scale to enrich the overall building composition and function. With the increased capacity for practice and learning and the additional areas for business infrastructure, the design of the 7DrumCity expansion building improves the business function and amplifies the ability to foster, energize, and expand DC’s music community.