Auditorium

Indian studio Sanjay Puri Architects dreamed up plans for a university that are quite unlike the usual imposing structures that immediately come to mind. It's a marvel from every angle, and especially so when you look at the roof.

Almost a decade in the making, MAD is nearing completion on its China Philharmonic Concert Hall in Beijing. The ambitious project is defined by a glowing translucent exterior that's meant to be reminiscent of a piece of white jade.

Japan's Shigeru Ban is famous for using materials like cardboard to build innovative refugee shelters, but his large-scale projects are equally impressive. La Seine Musicale is a ship-shaped music venue crowned by an almost egg-like auditorium with track-mounted solar array.

When you're one of the world's top symphony orchestras, it's only right that you should play in one of the world's best concert halls. That was the basis upon which MAD Architects worked when designing a new translucent, glowing, lotus-flower-inspired home for the China Philharmonic Orchestra.

The Italian city of Trento donated this colorful auditorium designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano to earthquake-affected Aquila.