Sydney Opera House

Utzon’s winning design (1957 competition) was revolutionary: huge sail-like shells rising from the harbor. But when he won, the geometry of the shells had not yet been solved. Engineers initially didn’t know how to build them. The construction delayed due to years of trial-and-error, finally solved by cutting sections from a sphere.

Because of the revolutionary design Sydney Opera House costs ballooned from an initial estimate of 7 million AUD to over 100 million AUD by the end. The public began to criticize the Opera House as a “white elephant” wasting taxpayer money.

In 1966, after years of conflict, Utzon clashed with the government over unpaid fees and design changes. The NSW government withheld payments, effectively forcing him to resign mid-project. After Utzon left, local architects (Peter Hall, Lionel Todd, and David Littlemore) took over and completed the building (1973).

Before renovated in 2020, the acoustics were widely described as muddy or uneven, with sound often rising into the high vaulted ceiling and failing to reflect back to audience and performers. This created a disconnect and blurred sound quality.

The acoustic upgrade was part of the final phase of the Opera House’s “Decade of Renewal” and occurred from February 2020 to July 2022. That’s when the Concert Hall was closed to the public for extensive renovation works, including major acoustic improvements.

After reopening in 2022 Andrew Haveron, Sydney Symphony Orchestra concertmaster, raved: “Better than we dared imagine… You can hear every minute detail now, every nuance – right up to the back row, everything pings through. It’s a miracle.”