Symphony Hall, Birmingham

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Symphony Hall is a 2,262 seat concert venue located inside the International Convention Centre (ICC) in Birmingham, England. Opened on April 15, 1991, it is home to the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and hosts around 270 events a year. It was completed at a cost of £30 million.^[1] The hall's interior is modelled upon the Musikverein in Vienna and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.^[2] In addition to concerts the venue is also used for community events, graduation ceremonies and conferences.

Symphony Hall's acoustic, widely considered one of the finest in the world, was designed by Russell Johnson of Artec Consultants Inc. A particularly innovative feature is the hall's acoustic flexibility. It has concrete-walled reverberation chambers behind the orchestra and extending high along the sides, adding 50% to the hall's volume, which can be opened or closed. There is a 32-tonne counterbalanced canopy which can be raised or lowered above the orchestra. Dampening curtains can be extended or retracted to ensure that the 'sound' of the space is perfectly matched to the scale and style of the music to be performed.^[3]

The hall is built only 30 metres (100 feet) from a covered railway line. As a result, the hall is mounted on rubber cushions, as is the railway track. The hall is also shielded from heavy traffic on Broad Street by double skins of concrete. Large, low-speed ducts cuts the ventilation noise.^[3]

In 2001 a 6000-pipe symphony organ was installed, designed and built by Johannes Klais Orgelbau in Bonn and specially tailored to the hall's reverberation chambers. This is now the largest mechanical action organ in the UK.

Symphony Hall has charitable status and through its Education/Community department carries out projects for schools, community groups and families. The trustees of Symphony Hall took on responsibility for Birmingham Town Hall on 4 October 2007 when it reopened.^[4]

Symphony Hall Interior

[edit] See also

List of major concert halls

[edit] References

^ John Tribe (1999). The Economics of Leisure and Tourism. Elsevier. ISBN 0750642327.
^ Sallie Westwood; John M. Williams (1997). Imagining Cities: Scripts, Signs, Memory. Routledge. ISBN 0415144299.
^ ^a ^b Alec Nisbett (2003). The Sound Studio: Audio Techniques for Radio, Television, Film and Recording. Focal Press, 50. ISBN 0240519116.
^ Performances Birmingham - charitable managing organisation

[edit] External links

Official website

v • d • e Buildings in Birmingham, England

Highrise (in height order):	BT Tower • 10 Holloway Circus • Chamberlain Clock Tower • Alpha Tower • Orion Building • The Rotunda • 103 Colmore Row • Five Ways Tower • Centre City Tower • 1 Snow Hill Plaza • Quayside Tower • Colmore Gate • The McLaren Building • Metropolitan House • Edgbaston House • Post & Mail Building • Jury's Inn Birmingham

Notable lowrise:	1-7 Constitution Hill • 17 & 19 Newhall Street • Birmingham Assay Office • Baskerville House • Central Library • Council House • Curzon Street railway station • Great Western Arcade • ICC • The Mailbox • Methodist Central Hall • Millennium Point • NIA • The Old Crown • Paradise Forum • Birmingham Proof House • Sarehole Mill • Symphony Hall • Town Hall • Victoria Law Courts

Major railway stations:	Moor Street station • New Street station • Snow Hill station

Major complexes:	Brindleyplace • Bull Ring, Birmingham • Pallasades Shopping Centre

Sports venues:	Alexander Stadium • Edgbaston Cricket Ground • St. Andrews • Villa Park

List of tallest buildings and structures in Birmingham • List of Birmingham board schools • Listed buildings in Birmingham