The $550 Million Question: How Does David Geffen Hall Sound? The $550 Million Question: How Does David Geffen Hall Sound?

The New York Philharmonic’s home underwent an extensive renovation that was finished two years ago. But that was only the beginning of the quest for the perfect sound.

When the New York Philharmonic English horn player and oboist Ryan Roberts performs at the renovated David Geffen Hall these days, he feels naked and exposed, as if he were appearing on a high-definition television screen.

“The sound is honest,” he said. “You hear everything — for better or for worse.”

The star violinist Hilary Hahn, a frequent soloist, has a sense of comfort. “You can trust your sound will project,” she said.

And John Adams, the composer and conductor, said that gone were the days of a concert hall that felt like Yankee Stadium. “It’s such a breath of fresh air,” he said. “You can go for much greater delicacy and subtlety.”

Geffen Hall, the home of the New York Philharmonic, reopened two years ago after a $550 million renovation. By gutting and rebuilding the interior, the project was meant to break, once and for all, the acoustical curse that had plagued the hall for decades. Unveiling the new space, the Philharmonic’s leaders declared a new era, clinking champagne glasses and hailing “our 2,200-seat crown jewel.”

So, after two years and more than 270 concerts, how does the hall sound?