Best of 2000: Best Small Concert Hall

Neurosciences Institute
10640 John Jay Hopkins Drive,
La Jolla

When Gerald Edelman created the Neurosciences Institute on Torrey Pines Mesa, he made sure that music would have a place there. The Institute's auditorium, while regularly used for scholarly symposia and lectures, is a 352-seat concert hall. Handsome and comfortable, its design reflects the architectural principles applied by Tod Williams and Billie Tsien to the entire research facility. The architects' collaboration with acoustician Cyril Harris resulted in a hall of virtually perfect sound. The Institute has made the auditorium available, without charge, to several of San Diego's nonprofit musical organizations. The Athenaeum has offered classical concerts and a jazz series; Mainly Mozart has made it one of their established venues. In September, a four-concert series organized by cellist Adrian Brendel featured chamber and vocal music by Mozart, Beethoven, and Gyorgy Kurtag.