Mailitis Architects reconstructed the Mezaparks Open-Air Stage in Riga, Latvia.

This project was created specifically for large-scale acapella choral performance, more specifically for the Latvian Nationwide Song and Dance Celebration – included in the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

When designing the reconstruction of the open-air stage in Mezaparks, Mailitis Architects had to solve capacity and acoustic challenges that prompted the reconstruction initially.

Forest acoustics create spacious echoes, providing one of the most suitable environments for choral singing – thus creating an "artificial forest" encapsulating the unique acoustics was the way forward for this project. The spatial analogy with the forest solves the acoustic challenges of the amphitheatre and hones a natural and specific sound that local chorists have described as a unique “silver sound".

Learning from nature was the leading principle in developing a venue for this unique acapella singing tradition, bringing together over 20,000 singers from all over Latvia. The roof – the leading acoustic element – is designed like a forest, the metal structure acts like tree branches and the wooden shields mimic the leaves.

This project has been longlisted in the cultural building category of Dezeen Awards 2022.

Architect: Mailitis Architects and Arhitekta J. Pogas Birojs

Project: Reconstruction of Mezaparks Open-Air Stage