About us

The new house of the town of Staufen — chosen and desired by the citizens in a refer­endum and built by the town in a central location. A place to meet and expe­ri­ence and create culture of all colors together. This creates a new oppor­tu­nity for Staufen and the vacation region of Schwarzwald­sueden, the Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald district and the Mark­gräfler Land up to the Kaiser­stuhl — as a genuine pilot project for an acousti­cally and archi­tec­turally special building in a rural area. With content that has something to offer everyone and is open to new ideas and formats.

A modern media library and event center under one roof offer many oppor­tu­ni­ties for partic­i­pa­tion: taking part in one of the VHS courses, attending group lessons at the youth music school, visiting the many events and festivals throughout the year, going dancing, partying or simply reading the latest issue of your favorite magazine in a cozy reading corner.

In 2012, fuchs.maucher.architekten from Waldkirch won the archi­tec­tural compe­ti­tion for the Faust­Forum. Following the official project launch in 2015, the Faust­Forum will now open its doors to the public on April 17, 2026.

The prop­a­ga­tion — or non-prop­a­ga­tion — of sound and noise played a partic­u­larly important role in the construc­tion. The core of the building is made of rein­forced concrete and the heating and venti­la­tion system is designed to operate almost silently without being restricted in its function. In addition to the acoustics, the multi­func­tion­ality of the building is of great impor­tance. The large hall can be flexibly seated, as can the three adjoining rooms. The entire building is built using sustain­able construc­tion methods.

The slight tapering of the wall surfaces in the hall promotes early reflec­tions from lateral direc­tions. The door reveals, which are set back by around 20 cm, and the pilaster strips in the upper wall area ensure desirable sound disper­sion and acoustic feedback to the stage. The same applies to the design of the ceiling. Sound-reflecting ceiling panels are set back by approx. 20 cm between the trusses. In this way, the available room volume is also optimally utilized acousti­cally.

A very important element is the curved forestage reflector, which empha­sizes the connec­tion between the audi­to­rium and the stage. The ceiling and side wall panels are sound-reflecting. The weight per unit area of the panels is deter­mined in such a way that a pronounced bass load is avoided. Sound-absorbing partial surfaces are inte­grated into the rear wall and also the end wall to the side of the stage.

So-called “over-acoustics” must be avoided on the stage; at the same time, the acoustic connec­tion between the stage and audi­to­rium should be promoted. To achieve this, curved ceiling sails with an absorbent backing were installed between the trusses. Sound-diffusing and bass-absorbing cladding was also fitted to the upper part of the walls.

For concert perfor­mances, mobile reflec­tive, curved acoustic walls are available on the stage, which can be indi­vid­u­ally adjusted. The rear wall is heavily dampened with a sound-absorbing curtain over the entire height.

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