[5] Lincoln Center invited nine architects to submit plans for Avery Fisher Hall's renovation in 2002,[6] selecting three architecture firms as finalists that June.

The shell of the building was to be left intact, and work was to focus on improving the hall's acoustics, modernizing patron amenities, and reconfiguring the auditorium.

[18] The new design includes a more compact hall, open social areas with bars, and video walls for live streaming performances and other events.

Their acousticians recommended a 2,400 seat "shoebox" design with narrowly spaced parallel sides (similar in shape to the acoustically acclaimed Symphony Hall, Boston).

However, the New York Herald Tribune began a campaign to increase the seating capacity of the new hall and late in the design stage it was expanded to accommodate the critics' desires, invalidating much of BBN's acoustical work.

[26] The concert, featuring Leonard Bernstein, the New York Philharmonic, and a host of operatic stars such as Eileen Farrell and Robert Merrill, was televised live on CBS.

[27] Management made several attempts to remedy the induced acoustical problems, with little success, leading to a substantial 1970s renovation designed by acoustician Cyril Harris in conjunction with project architect Philip Johnson.

It included demolishing the hall's interior, selling its pipe organ to California's Crystal Cathedral, and rebuilding a new auditorium within the outer framework and facade.

While initial reaction to the improvements was favorable and some advocates remained steadfast,[28] overall feelings about the new hall's sound soured and acoustics there continued to be problematic.

[29]In December 1977, High Fidelity magazine published an article that stated members of the Philharmonic disliked the sound so much they referred to the venue as "A Very Fishy Hall.

"[30] In 1992, under the tenure of Kurt Masur with the New York Philharmonic, several solid maple wood convex surfaces were installed on the side walls and suspended from the ceiling of the stage to improve acoustics.

Composer Samuel Barber was commissioned to write his Piano Concerto for the opening of the venue, and the work was premiered at the inaugural concert on September 24, 1962 with pianist John Browning.

[40] A February 12, 1964 performance by Miles Davis at Philharmonic Hall to benefit the Mississippi Freedom Summer was released on two albums, My Funny Valentine and Four & More.

The show, which starred Jewel, Jackson Browne, Roger Daltrey, and Nathan Lane as the principal characters from the 1939 film, benefited the Children's Defense Fund, and aired subsequently on TNT, TBS, PBS, and VH-1.