Armstrong breaks ground on new $15M performing arts center

800-seat auditorium to serve as church, college and community cultural center

EDMOND, Okla.—With a golden shovel, Armstrong International Cultural Foundation Chairman Gerald Flurry officially broke ground on the foundation's new performing arts center in an outdoor ceremony Sunday, January 6 in north Edmond. The 800-seat concert hall, to be named Armstrong Auditorium, will serve as a worship center for the Philadelphia Church of God's headquarters congregation in addition to housing the Foundation's performing arts series.

The Armstrong International Cultural Foundation is a non-profit, humanitarian organization sponsored by the Philadelphia Church of God, headquartered on the Herbert W. Armstrong College campus in north Edmond. The hall—which is expected to cost $15 million—will sit on the southern end of the college campus just north of Waterloo Road on the east side of Bryant.

The new performing arts center has been designed by the Oklahoma City-based firm Rees Associates, Inc. Its résumé is impressive: the tallest building in Dallas, the commanding Rose State College Performing Arts Center just east of Oklahoma City, Black Entertainment Television's corporate headquarters, FBI buildings throughout the U.S., and even a health-care facility in Istanbul, Turkey.  

Armstrong Auditorium provided unique challenges for Rees architects—designing a world-class facility for a relatively rural area. The auditorium will rest on the campus's most topographically interesting land—with a terraced hill leading down to the three-acre, spring-fed Spurlin Lake. In order to make the building of the finest quality—the highest caliber materials and acoustics—as well as to be able to host the greatest performers from all over the world, the Foundation decided its performing arts center must not be too big.

Some of the most reputable names in acoustical engineering have high hopes for Armstrong Auditorium. Consulting on the plans were Ron McKay and Dave Conant of the acoustical firm McKay Conant Brook in California. McKay was an acoustical engineer for the legendary Ambassador Auditorium in Pasadena, Calif. during its planning stages. The Ambassador's perfect acoustics earned it the title, "the Carnegie Hall of the West Coast."

McKay's colleague, Dave Conant, expects Armstrong Auditorium to potentially exceed Ambassador's excellent acoustics with a more ideal reverberation time. Additionally, since the Armstrong Auditorium will be smaller in seat count, it will be "more intimate acoustically and visually" than Ambassador, he said.

The ratio comparing the volume of the hall to each seat will be more ideal at Armstrong Auditorium than Amsterdam's Concertgebouw, Boston's Symphony Hall, and Vienna's Musikverein—the three standards engineers use to compare acoustic quality.

Construction is expected to take 22 months and the grand opening is scheduled for late 2009 or early 2010. More...

Why only two events?

As you may be aware, we have been planning to build an 800-seat auditorium on the southern most part of our campus, just off Bryant Road, north of Waterloo. We are very excited to announce that these plans have essentially been completed, and we are hoping to break ground during our next concert season! More...

Edmond Life & Leisure reviews foundation's Romeros concert.

"Continuing its practice of bringing the very best international musicians in concert to the Herbert W. Armstrong College for its guest artist series, a tradition that harkens back to the excellent performance arts series begun by the original Armstrong [Ambassador] College in Los Angeles during the 1970s and 1980s, the Philadelphia Church of God, with headquarters now here in Edmond at its re-established college, the foundation offered "The Romeros, the Royal Family of the Spanish Guitar," as the closing artists billed on its current season. The Romeros, just prior to their embarkation on a European tour, in a brilliant performance by its guitar quartet more than lived up to its lofty appellation." More...

Edmond Life & Leisure reviews foundation's PDQ Bach concert.

"One of the coldest nights of the new year did not keep away VIPs and invited guests ready to enjoy the lovely formal reception to celebrate the opening of the beautiful and impressive new hall of Administration at the Herbert W. Armstrong College. Nor did the large and devoted audience stay away from the concert of master musician and funnyman, Peter Schickele." More...

World-Class Auditorium Plans Near Completion

On August 24, 2004, a month after Armstrong International Cultural Foundation acquired a 9-foot Hamburg Steinway grand piano and a pair of Baccarat crystal candelabra from the Ambassador Auditorium in Pasadena, Calif., officials began talks with architects to begin planning of a new auditorium on the Herbert W. Armstrong College campus.

Less than two years later, foundation officials have come to the final stages of the plans—designed by the Oklahoma City-based firm Rees Associates, Inc., also responsible for designing the Rose State Performing Arts Center in Midwest City.

The planned 800-seat auditorium is largely modeled after the incomparable Ambassador Auditorium in Pasadena, Calif., and will house the piano and candelabra.

In April 2006, to ensure the highest acoustical standards—as was Ambassador's legacy—Foundation officials met via telephone with Ron McKay of the acoustical firm McKay Conant Brook in California. Mr. McKay was an acoustical engineer for Ambassador Auditorium during its planning stages. His reputation in the acoustics industry and his understanding of Ambassador made for invaluable advice for the Foundation.

Mr. McKay's colleague, Dave Conant said that Herbert W. Armstrong College's auditorium will exceed Pasadena's acoustics with a more ideal reverberation time. Additionally, he said, since the Armstrong auditorium will be smaller in seat count, it would be "more intimate acoustically and visually" than Ambassador.

Also, the ratio comparing the volume of the room to each seat will be better at the AC auditorium than Amsterdam's Concertgebouw, Boston's Symphony Hall, and Vienna's Musikverein—the three standards engineers use to compare acoustic quality.

The auditorium will sit on the southeast corner of the campus—near the Bryant Road entrance to the campus. Click here for an aerial view.