Curtis Institute of Music
From the case study by Pentagram:
The Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia is arguably the best conservatory in the world, offering a tuition-free undergraduate and graduate programs in instrumental and vocal performance, as well as composition. Known for its rigorous training and selectivity, the institute admits a small number of exceptionally talented students each year and has produced many accomplished musicians and composers who have gone on to have successful careers in classical music, opera, and other genres. Distinguished alumni include Leonard Bernstein, Samuel Barber, Lang Lang, Nino Rota and Ned Rorem, among others.
Pentagram has designed a new visual identity for Curtis, launched to coincide with its 100th anniversary in 2024. Sound and dynamic motion are integral to the identity. The typography of the logo extends to a custom-drawn typeface, also called Curtis. The system also includes a special centennial logo that kinetically expands like the amplification of sound.
2 Comments on “Curtis Institute of Music”
Tiên, you shared this project here on Fonts In Use, but didn’t add any commentary from your side. I’m curious, what do you like – or dislike – about it?
To be honest, the custom typeface falls flat for me. A grotesk with trendy ink traps and leave-shaped terminals – it’s neither fish nor fowl. This looks like one of those first forays into font editing by a graphic designer: fiddling around with terminals and counters of an existing typeface, deleting a corner here and moving around a point there… that’s not how type design works. The result also resembles the clumsiness of AI-generated letterforms.
Sorry I didn’t leave any comments so you could understand better. More than liking or disliking, I was impressed by the way Pentagram varied a font to express the characteristics of a symphony orchestra based on the different sounds each instrument emits. And I feel it’s worth sharing so everyone can refer to this variation for themselves. A font can also be broken up to form a graph. But your contribution was a great part so I could look at it more closely. Really thank you.