On September 12, 1997, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, under Maestro Jesús López-Cobos, inaugurated its new concert enclosure. The celebration was the result of collaboration, between the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, and Artec Consultants Inc, aimed at improving the onstage acoustics in the Music Hall.

Challenges faced the group from the outset. Firstly were the varied needs of the multiple users: the 3516-seat Music Hall serves the Cincinnati Pops and Symphony Orchestras, also the May Festival, a large choral festival, and the Cincinnati Opera. Also, the building's structure is primarily wood, and the amount of weight that could be suspended from the ceiling or supported from the stage floor was limited. Furthermore, any work or installation was limited to a window of four weeks.

Artec provided the acoustical and theatrical design of the shell, as well as new concert lighting. The final design comprised three adjustable concert ceilings, two forestage canopies, and eleven concert towers, two of which featured doors for musicians to enter through, and which were also large enough to store a concert piano for concertos. The enclosure is fully demountable for the Festival and Opera seasons.

All of the elements were detailed and therefore could be largely assembled off-site, leaving final assembly to take place during four weeks. Preparatory rigging work in attic and above the stagehouse-rigging grid took place during the final weeks of the Opera season. Artec supervised the entire design and construction process, and continued working with the CSO musicians for a full year after installation to help the orchestra understand how best to use the new enclosure.