An innovative project, the Philharmonie de Paris, an iconic music complex located in the south-east of the Parc de La Villette, opened a 1,000m² space dedicated to children, in September 2021.
The splendid building – designed by French architect Jean Nouvel – now hosts within its walls a magnificent musical trail adorned with thought-provoking, sensory, playful and interactive installations.
Tactile Studio is very proud to have been able to work alongside French designer Constance Guisset and her team, on the production of tactile objects, hands-on devices and a unique scenography.
It was a collaborative project with Hecho – Tactile Studio’s creative carpentry partner.
Play, explore, listen, create, experience and feel music and sounds
Children can now immerse themselves completely independently in five rich and varied zones, without having any previous musical knowledge or experience.
The installations, whether monumental, personal or collective, allow them to discover music in all its forms. They can play and have fun with the sounds of natural materials or of everyday objects, while learning to become the musicians of tomorrow through giant instruments, feeling the excitement, emotions and pleasure of being on stage, or experiencing the liberating and evocative power of music.
“Club Jazz” traces the story of this musical genre originating from the southern United States – but that’s not all.
Children are invited to go back in time and discover the relationship between jazz and the development of music–players. That’s right: the story of jazz goes hand-in-hand with that of the gramophone, record players and the jukebox.
A new scenographic design project for Hecho – Tactile Studio’s creative carpentry partner
The inclusive design agency’s sister organisation put all its skills and resources into the production of the scenography for the “Thousands of voices” exhibit.
This new space offers children the chance to play with their voices and to discover those of others. They’re invited to experience a unique voyage by listening to and exploring music and vocal expressions and techniques from around the world… all while becoming aware of their own voice.
“Portraits that sing“, the highlight of the exhibition, was a truly difficult technical challenge.
Mika Zimmerman, Director of Hecho, says, ‘The project artists wanted children to view and discover in instructive and experiential ways the portraits of people from many different countries living around the Philharmonic.’
To do this, the creative carpenters produced viewing windows, each made of a revolving electromagnetic wheel with integrated light and sound.
To see one of the portraits singing, the children have to activate one of six buttons on the device. And what else is there? They can also record themselves and make their own “singing portraits”.
This space is also full of a multitude of tactile objects designed by Tactile Studio, with a focus on… the voice.
With tactile objects, hands–on devices and scenography, this entire project allowed Tactile Studio and Hecho to combine their skills and unique know-how to bring music and sounds to life.
And the best thing of all? All the devices were designed to be handled intuitively and enable the inclusion of all disabilities!
Client: Philharmonie de Paris
Design and Scenography: Constance Guisset Studio
Production: Groupe Tactile (Tactile Studio, Atelier WAM, Hecho)