Swing House’s Seven-Storey Soundscape

“Not much has changed since we roamed the Savannah,” says Aki Päivärinne, the sound designer of Swing House. “Nature’s quiet still makes us feel at ease.”

At Swing House office facility that will open at Espoo’s Keilaniemi business district in Q4, 2021, particular attention was paid to spatial sound design.

What’s unique about the seven-storey building is that, when you walk in and past the lobby, you enter an open space that leads all the way up to the seventh floor. There’s a staircase and a vast, green wall with plants and herbs, as high as the building itself.

For Aki Päivärinne the green wall provided a great opportunity to build a soundscape that mimics our ancient natural environment.

“I started my work by creating a virtual version of the space that has the same acoustic qualities as the real one,” Aki explains. “I then filled this space with hundreds of minute instances of sound, each uniquely positioned and moving around along their own path.”

“When you come to the staircase, you’ll hear every single sound exactly where it appears, just like you would in nature. The soundscape will invite you to raise your head and experience it while you walk up the stairs.”

In Swing House everything is designed to support people’s cognitive processes and well-being. With its sounds and colours the central staircase lures you to take the steps instead of elevators – which are placed slightly out of sight.

The lighting of Swing House follows the natural rhythm of day and night. The amount and colour of the light changes from the morning’s bright and blue to the evening’s more yellow, dimmer tones, keeping you energised throughout the day.

Do you want to work in a unique environment with perfect ambiance? Get in touch to talk about the right space for your company!