History: Music Department

Hecht, Burdeshaw, Johnson, Kidd & Clark, P.C., Architects
Hardy Holzman Pfeiffer Associates
Theatre Projects Consultants - Jaffe Holden
Acoustics, Inc.
Beers Construction

The CSU Music Department, founded in 1969, was located in Fine Arts Hall on the main campus. As the music department grew to become one of the major programs on campus, it physically overwhelmed its quarters. The music department's need for a larger facility was recognized by the mid-eighties. In 1993, this need complimented and coincided with a city-wide initiative to contract for an urban design update and tourism strategy for the Columbus riverfront area which eventually evolved into the construction of a performing arts center which broke ground in 1998. The RiverCenter for the Performing Arts is a property of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, and a cooperative project of this department, the Board of Regents of the State University System of Georgia, and the Downtown Development Authority of Columbus. It is jointly operated by CSU and RiverCenter, Inc. Stimulated by a $17 million state appropriation, and a city of Columbus donation of downtown property valued at $1 million, and an unprecedented community effort, The Columbus Challenge campaign which was directed by the nonprofit Community Projects Foundation, Inc, created funding for the complex and many other community arts organizations.

This is a $67 million project featuring a 245,000 square foot facility housing three performance halls (the 2,000 seat Heard Theatre (above), a 450 seat Legacy Hall (below left) with the Jordan concert organ (below right)(an Opus 60 custom mechanical action organ with 3 manuals, 57 stops, 65 ranks, and 3,600 pipes, built by Orgues LeTourneau of Quebec, and the Studio Theater with 150 flexible seats), the School of Music, and the Music Library.

Drawing of the RiverCenter