Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra: Website Design and Development

The Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra is a national professional orchestra with firm roots in the Hamilton community, performing at the First Ontario Concert Hall and across the city. With a unique national and local reputation, they required an updated website that would advertise their concerts and show schedule, speak to their involvement in the community, as well as articulate their success and acclaim as a Canadian orchestra. HPO engaged Cubicle Fugitive to develop a new website that enabled the orchestra to achieve their goals.

Cubicle Fugitive discovered that the HPO website lacked the functionality, Search Engine Optimization options, styling features and accessibility standards that are essential for a well performing website. To remedy this, the Cubicle Fugitive team worked to develop a new WordPress site that was able to house all content and videos of the orchestra, support easy navigation by the wide-ranging patron base, incorporate unique design elements, and ensure all content was easily accessible.

Our team developed simple headings at the top of the website, with detailed dropdown menu options, to help the user navigate the site and efficiently find the information they need. The HPO website houses a large amount of content, from ticket and show information, to educational resources and information for patrons and orchestra members; the site needed to guide users to the content they needed. The dropdown menu filters from large categories to more specific queries as the user continues down their path, guiding them in an easy way to the content they require.

The design team then created a website concept, utilizing the colours and ‘sound waves,’ seen on HPO's logo and throughout their website.

The design team then created a website concept, utilizing the colours and ‘sound waves,’ seen on HPO's logo and throughout their website. This was all accomplished while keeping user engagement and accessibility top of mind.

The Cubicle Fugitive website development team faced the challenge of creating a fully integrated WordPress site that was able to house blog and team member content, educational resources, as well as support ticket and seasonal content information and sales. Understanding the large scale of the project, the development team was involved in all aspects of the site, from conception to launch. This allowed the team to find unique solutions to potential development issues as they arose, ensuring the content and design elements were precisely transferred onto the site.

The result is a stunning website that can support the HPO’s needs now and in all their future endeavours. Our team enjoyed being a part of this project and supported an organization that benefits the Hamilton community that Cubicle Fugitive calls home.