WORLD'S FIRST AUDIO MUSEUM TURNS SOUND INTO ARCHITECTURE

The world's first dedicated audio museum transforms sound into architecture. Audeum in Seoul spans seven levels and just over 11,000 square meters, housing the world's largest audio equipment archives in its sensorial array of vessel-like spaces. This isn't your typical museum. This is sound made physical. Michael Chung, founder of vacuum tube amplifier brand Silbatone Acoustics, built this uniquely designed audio museum in Seocho-gu, near Gangnam, Seoul, overlooking the beautiful scenery of Cheonggyesan. The museum was founded in June 2024 by Michael Chung (Chung Mong-jin), Chairman of KCC Corporation, as a profound tribute to his father, the late honorary chairman Chung Sang-yung. But what started as a memorial became something revolutionary. Kengo Kuma and Associates designed the new museum with an exterior envelope with 20,000 overlapping aluminium tubes that create changing shadows, echoing the effect of sunlight that accumulates in a bamboo forest. The Japanese architect translates this vision into a sculptural exterior clad in overlapping aluminum louvers to create changing shadows, echoing the effect of sunlight pooling in a forest. The building breathes. It shifts. It performs. Walk inside and the aluminum pipes give way to something warmer. The interiors employ the wood drape technique, utilizing Alaskan cypress to finish the exhibition rooms and public spaces. The softness and texture of the wood function as both a visual and acoustic treatment. This wood was used due to its strong scent and its "draped finish" which creates impressive acoustic effects. Every surface serves sound. "Moreover, it is not just a place to listen to sound, it is an architectural instrument that returns humans to a natural state, allowing them to experience the five senses of the body." 'The Audeum (Audio Museum) is a space where you can experience not only visual elements but also sound, light, wind, and fragrance, engaging all the senses. This place, where you can experience a new sensory world, goes beyond a museum, providing a special healing and sensory experience.' The museum houses a collection of sound reproduction equipment that chronicles the evolution of audio engineering from the late 19th century through the mid-20th-century golden age. The museum features the Western Electric 12-A and 13-A Sound Systems, famous as the world's first large cinema sound systems, which played a crucial role in the transition from silent films to "talkies". Another notable exhibit is the Lansing Iconic loudspeaker from 1937, credited with sparking the home audio technology revolution. Expect to see some in the inaugural show, "Jung Eum: In Search of Sound," which explores the hunt for "good sound reproduction" through rarities like Edison phonographs to the Western Electric loudspeaker. Showcasing rarities such as the Edison phonograph and the Western Electric loudspeaker, the Audeum manifests Chung's passion for acoustics and his vision to foster appreciation of the auditory arts among the public. The Audeum Audio Museum is open Thursday through Saturday from 10:00 to 18:00. Admission is free, though only by appointment. Currently, all reservations for June are fully booked! Demand speaks volumes. "Going forward, we will not be healed solely by the visual," Kuma said in a video. "Sound will play a critical role in our healing and recovery from various sources of modern-day stress." "Audeum will symbolise a new era of healing through the sense of hearing," Kuma predicts, hoping for a bright future of sensory engagement and ingenuity in architecture. This isn't just Seoul catching up. This is Seoul creating the future of cultural experience, one frequency at a time.