School for Folk Music

Military Institute of Science and Technology

Project idea

Folk, the most versatile genre of music on this land. Characterized by simple musical structure and words, it has found itself deep in the roots of Bangladesh. It is the music of the boatmen, the bullock cart drivers, it is the devotional songs dedicated to pirs. Folk is everywhere! Same and yet a little different from one place to another. The objective is to create a space which is to be home to the versatile folk music of the country.

Project description

Gulshan, one of the most bustling neighborhoods of Dhaka City, is to home this school. The site, adjacent Gulshan lake to its east and the park to its west, is north - south oriented. A space that would entice all folk musicians throughout the country, to gather, and nurture the development of the new generations of folk musicians to come. Creating a space fit for a such a diverse form of art, we take a look back at the history of architecture of this region. Inspired from the region’s vernacular architecture, the roof is pitched using a concrete shell with an opening for light at center. Light from roof gives an ambiance of the cave, a common place of worship of folk musicians throughout history.

Technical information

The school has a capacity of 80 students, 20 students per year and 10 students for each class room. Comprised of two wings, public and private. The public wing contains Administration, Cafe and the Lalon Hall, a multipurpose hall dedicated to the father of folk music of this nation, Lalon Shah. At the private wing, there are all 8 classrooms in the ground and first floor. There is also a seminar room, faculty office and a library, that has a collection of old scriptures and poems from Buddhist monasteries.