Remembering Frank Gehry, Architect of Walt Disney Concert Hall

December 5, 2025, 10:25 PM · Frank Gehry, the architect who designed Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, died on Friday at his home in Los Angeles. He was 96.

Frank Gehry, Walt Disney Concert Hall. Photo illustration by Violinist.com.

Disney Hall, completed in 2003, was among Gehry's most famous and recognizable buildings, which also include the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain; Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris, 8 Spruce in New York, the Weisman Art Museum in Minneapolis, the Dancing House in Prague and the Pierre Boulez Saal in Berlin, built for Daniel Barenboim’s West-Eastern Divan Orchestra.

Gehry also designed the new $335 million, 100,000-square-foot expansion of the Colburn School, currently under construction in downtown Los Angeles, a block away from Disney Hall. It includes the 1,100-seat Terri and Jerry Kohl Hall, slated for opening in fall 2027.

"Frank Gehry did more than any other single individual in the 21st century to benefit music," wrote Mark Swed, the longtime classical music writer for the LA Times. "Disney, with stunning acoustics, proved both a place of modernity for a new millennium and one of the world’s most acoustically engaging venues.... Of all his buildings, other than his home, Disney is the one Gehry spent the most time in, regularly attending concerts."

Born in Toronto, Gehry came to Los Angeles just after World War II, as a teenager, to study architecture at the University of Southern California. He went on to study at the Harvard Graduate School of Design in 1956 and 1957 and set up his practice in Los Angeles in 1962.

His own home in Santa Monica - which he wrapped in corrugated steel, chain link and exposed wood framing - was a testing ground for his experimental style.

In 1989, at age 60, Gehry was awarded the industry's top accolade, the Pritzker Architecture prize, for lifetime achievement. It was only after that - in his late 60s (when some might be considering retirement) that he was asked to design the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain - a project that catapulted his reputation to new levels with its completion in 1997. Disney Hall came some six years after that, and Gehry continued working up until the end of his long life.

"I've always been for optimism and architecture not being sad," Gehry told NPR in 2004. "You know, a building for music and performance should be joyful. It should be a great experience and it should be fun to go to."

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Replies

Laurie Niles

December 6, 2025 at 10:02 PM · "There hasn’t been a better architect for classical music than Frank Gehry, who died on Friday at 96. In designing halls and amphitheaters across the United States and abroad, he had a maverick’s aesthetic and the ear of a passionate fan, making sure his buildings consistently sounded as marvelous as they looked."

From the New York Times this morning (gift link, so you can read).

Elisabeth Matesky

December 8, 2025 at 07:02 PM · As from ~ Elisabeth Matesky, "Apostle" of Heifetz & Nathan Milstein and truly saddened due Passing of Genius Architect, Frank Gehry, the major ingenious Architect and being duly honoured by Laurie Niles on her loving Violinist.com website for his Immense Global Contributions to The Arts and to Music Classical throughout The World ... Irreplaceable Architect who Loved Beauty His Way via Glorious Styled Buildings honouring Classicism in Music for All Peoples throughout this World And So Needed and Revered by All People even if not knowing all reasons Why ~ It matters Not due to an Epic Human Person creating Sound Spaces made Beautiful for All Human Persons to Hear GOAT Music performed by many GOAT Artists, some of whom have been 'Called Home': i.e., Jascha Heifetz; Nathan Milstein, Pablo Casals; Gregor Piatigorsky; Horowitz; Emil Gilels; Arthur Rubinstein and so so many GOAT Musicians an Honour Role would take 24/7 non stop Days to List ...

Thanking Laurie Niles for her appropriate Honouring of now late Frank Gehry's Legacy which shall Stand a Long Long Time for Untold Future Generation's of "Angelino's" and People's of The World & coming soon with The Olympics being held in LA's Coliseum plus The World Cup and many other major International Events attracting The Peoples of The World who shall See this Epic New Colburn School of Music Newly designed and in the Process of being Built as a Frank Gehry Tribute to Music and The Arts in Downtown LA which is making me tear up being Los Angeles born and proud of the Cultural Emphasis on Music and The Arts currently ongoing in Los Angeles, California ...

May the Family of Genius, Frank Gehry receive Immense Blessings during a Time of Utter Grief from All of Us who have admired a Father/ Husband and Genius of All Global Architecture having Given his entire Life to beautify many Cities of The World ... Sincere Condolences to The Gehry Family & to All Colleagues of Maestro Gehry, from Chicago with saddened 'Love's Sorrow' ~

~ ~ Musician Violinist Orig Pupil of Heifetz ~ ~

.................. Elisabeth Matesky ..................

Fwd ~ dmg Save "Book File EM Gehry Passing V.com 8.12.25"{#2} following Editor Laurie Nile's Salute {#1} ~

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