R. Lawrence (Larry) Kirkegaard died in 2024 (date in mid-2024, when determined, will be added).
Larry was one of the most prominent acousticians of his generation and the founder of R. Lawrence Kirkegaard & Associates, Inc, the architectural acoustics and integrated systems consultancy now known as Kirkegaard. He was a Fellow of the Acoustical Society of America and an honorary member of the American Institute of Architects.
From Northwestern University’s Pick-Staiger Concert Hall (1975) to Antwerp’s Queen Elisabeth Hall (2016) Larry helped shape hundreds of acoustically excellent spaces - concert halls, multi-purpose halls, theaters, music schools, churches and amphitheaters - beloved by performers and audiences alike. His outstanding projects include the Ordway Music Theatre in St. Paul (1985); Alice Pratt Brown Hall for the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University (1991); Seiji Ozawa Concert Hall at Tanglewood (1994); the Music Center at Strathmore in Bethesda (2005); and the Curtis R. Priem Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (2008).
Larry was memorably approachable, warm and charming. He had a knack for intuiting the architectural sources of acoustic problems and envisioning architectural modifications to correct them - and a talent for creating vivid metaphors to explain acoustic concepts to musicians, architects and clients alike. His major renovations include Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco (1992); Heinz Hall in Pittsburgh (1995); Orchestra Hall in Chicago (1997); Meyerhoff Hall in Baltimore (2001); and Royal Festival Hall in London (2007). Larry was instrumental in evaluating the acoustics of Carnegie Hall after the 1986 renovation and devising a series of subtle treatments, implemented in the ‘90s, that restored the acoustic beauty of the beloved hall.
Notable through-lines of his consulting work included the integration of acoustics with beautiful architecture, respect for the contributions of his fellow collaborators, and a delight in finding innovative solutions to any problem. Larry approached every situation as a design opportunity, and he never stopped designing.
Larry was born December 11, 1937 in Denver, CO. His parents were Raymond Lawrence and Frances Jean (Stocking) Kirkegaard.
After preparing at North Denver High School, Larry went east to Harvard College where he was a member of Kirkland House and the Harvard Class of 1960, earning his A.B. cum laude in architectural sciences in 1960. In 1964, he earned his M.A. in architecture from Harvard’s Graduate School of Design in 1964.
While in Cambridge, Larry worked closely with his mentor, Bob Newman, one of the founders of the seminal acoustics consulting firm Bolt Beranek & Newman. Upon graduation he joined BBN, eventually running their Chicago office. He often spoke of how much he learned on one of his earliest tasks at BBN, helping with the testing of the new Philharmonic Hall at Lincoln Center, famously rebuilt as Avery Fisher Hall and rebuilt again as Geffen Hall.
In 1976, Larry left BBN to form Kirkegaard & Associates with his BBN colleagues Pete Tappan and Wally Barrow. Over the following decades he built Kirkegaard into one of the world’s most respected architectural acoustics consultancies, surrounding himself with talented colleagues who benefited immeasurably from his mentorship and insights and contributed immeasurably to the success of the firm.
Larry retired from Kirkegaard Associates in 2015, passing ownership of the firm to Joseph W. A. Myers, who joined Kirkegaard in 1987.
Co-founder Chestnut Hill Mental Health Center, Greenville, South Carolina. Member American Institute of Architects (honorary, national committee on arts and recreation), Acoustical Society of America, Harvard Graduate School Design Alumni Council, United States Institute Theatre Technology, American Symphony Orchestra League, Harvard Club (Chicago).
Larry’s devoted wife, Rogene Kirkegaard, survives him, having dedicated her life to assisting and caring for Larry in his last two decades at Kirkegaard, in the following years when he offered a personal consultancy, LKAcoustics, and in his final years when advanced Alzheimer’s disease made further work impossible.
Larry had three children: Dana Lawrence, Jonathan Eric and Bradford Andrew.
