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 Photograph © Wayne Lorentz  Photograph © Wayne Lorentz |
In November 1979, the citizens of Dallas voted to set aside 60 acres in downtown Dallas in which to concentrate the city's arts and cultural treasures. Soon thereafter, an architectural master plan was developed for the Dallas Arts District. The Dallas Museum of Art emerged at one end of the District. The Dallas Theater Center began operating the Arts District Theater and the Dallas Symphony Association began the site selection process for its future home in the hart of the city's new cultural mecca. In 1980, under the leadership of Dallas Symphony Association President Robert Decherd, Morton H. Meyerson, a member of the Board of Governors, chaired a committee charged with development of a building program and selection of an architect and acoustician. Meyerson appointed Stanley Marcus chairman of the architect selection committee. More than 100 world renowned architects were considered and in December of 1980, I.M. Pei was awarded the commission. At the same time, Dr. Eugene Bonelli, dean of the Meadows School of the Arts at Southern Methodist University was appointed chairman of the search committee for an acoustician. In early 1981, the committee selected Russell Johnson, founder of Artec Consultants, Inc. to serve as the hall's acoustician and major theatrical consultant. Work began in earnest. Through the generosity of the Borden Company, several parcels of land were donated to the Dallas Symphony Association. The land, together with other city-owned parcels and the cooperative efforts of private development companies, made it possible for Pei's design to be established on a prime site bounded by Leonard, Flora and Pearl Streets and Woodall Rodgers Freeway. Under the leadership of Henry S. Miller, Jr., the most comprehensive capital campaign ever undertaken by an American arts institution began. The Cornerstone Campaign ran from January 1983 through December 1985 and raised more than $50 million, much of which was dedicated toward construction of the Symphony Center. In late 1984, the Ross Perot family gave the Dallas Symphony Association $10 million to assure that the new hall would meet the international standards set forth by the architect and acoustician. In recognition of the gift, the Association gave Mr. Perot the opportunity to name the facility. He did so, honoring his friend, business colleague and Chairman of the building committee, Morton H. Meyerson. An additional generous gift from the Eugene McDermott Foundation enabled the completion of the technically precise and architecturally compelling Eugene McDermott Concert Hall - the music chamber within the great hall. Ground was broken in September of 1985 and in September of 1989, the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center opened its doors to international critical acclaim. It now stands as a tribute to a city that continues to set standards in musical excellence. The Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center rises proudly in the Dallas Arts District as the architectural and acoustical benchmark by which concert halls around the world are judged. |
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