The Royal Festival Hall reopening celebrations

The Royal Festival Hall is a concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London, England. Southbank Centre is a complex of artistic venues located in London, UK, on the South Bank of the River Thames between County Hall London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge. The South Bank is the area in London on the southern bank of the River Thames near Waterloo station that houses a number of important The Thames ( is a major River flowing through southern England. The Hungerford Bridge crosses the River Thames in London, and lies between Waterloo Bridge and Westminster Bridge. It is a Grade I listed building - the first post-war building to become so protected (in April 1988). A listed building in the United Kingdom is a building or other structure officially designated as being of special architectural historical or cultural significance Year 1988 ( MCMLXXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar) The Royal Festival Hall seats 2,900, the Queen Elizabeth Hall 917 and the Purcell Room 370. Symphony orchestra the London Philharmonic performs the majority of its London concerts in the hall, which is part of the Southbank Centre. An orchestra is an instrumental ensemble, usually fairly large with string brass woodwind sections and possibly a percussion section as well The London Philharmonic Orchestra ( LPO) based in London, is one of the major Orchestras of the United Kingdom, and is based in the Royal Southbank Centre is a complex of artistic venues located in London, UK, on the South Bank of the River Thames between County Hall

^[1]

The hall was built as part of the Festival of Britain by Holland, Hannen & Cubitts for London County Council, and was officially opened on 3 May 1951. The Festival of Britain was a national exhibition which opened in London and around Britain in May 1951 Holland Hannen & Cubitts was a major building firm responsible for many of the great buildings of London. London County Council (LCC was the principal local government body for the County of London, throughout its 1889-1965 existence and the first London-wide general municipal Events 1491 - Kongo monarch Nkuwu Nzinga is baptised by Portuguese missionaries adopting the baptismal name of João Year 1951 ( MCMLI) was a Common year starting on Monday. Events of 1951 January When the Greater London Council (LCC's successor) was abolished in 1986, the Hall was taken over by the Arts Council. The Greater London Council (GLC was the top-tier Local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986 Year 1986 ( MCMLXXXVI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar) An arts council is a government or private non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the Arts mainly by funding local artists awarding prizes and organizing events at It is now run by Southbank Centre. Southbank Centre is a complex of artistic venues located in London, UK, on the South Bank of the River Thames between County Hall Since the late 1980s the hall has operated an 'open foyers' policy, opening up the substantial foyer spaces to the public throughout the day, even if there are no performances. This has proved very popular and the foyers are now one of the best used public spaces in London.

Each year Southbank Centre puts on a festival known as 'Meltdown'. This year the festival is curated by Massive Attack and features events across the Royal Festival Hall and Queen Elizabeth Hall.

The closest tube stations are Waterloo and Embankment. The London Underground is a Metro system serving a large part of Greater London and neighbouring areas of Essex, Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire Embankment tube station is a London Underground station in the City of Westminster, known for most of its history as Charing Cross.

History

The foundation stone was laid by Clement Attlee, then Prime Minister, in 1949 on the site of the former Lion Brewery, built in 1837. Clement Richard Attlee 1st Earl Attlee, KG, OM, CH, PC ( 3 January 1883 &ndash 8 October 1967 Year 1949 ( MCMXLIX) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Year 1837 ( MDCCCXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common ^[2] The original plan was that Arturo Toscanini would conduct the opening concerts, but he was unwell, and the inaugural concerts were conducted by Sir Malcolm Sargent and Sir Adrian Boult. WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Arturo Toscanini (ɑrˈturɔ ˌtɔskɑˈnini (March 25 1867 &ndash January WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes -->Sir Harold Malcolm Watts Sargent (29 April 1895 &ndash 3 October 1967 WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Sir Adrian Cedric Boult CH ( 8 April 1889 ^[3][4] The hall was the venue for the 1960 Eurovision Song Contest, hosted by Katie Boyle. Year 1960 ( MCMLX) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Catherine "Katie" Boyle (born Caterina Irene Elena Maria Imperiali Di Francavilla on 29 May 1926) is a Television presenter, well known

The hall's design is unashamedly Modernist, the Festival's commissioning architect (Hugh Casson) having taken the decision to appoint only young architects. Modernism describes an array of Cultural movements rooted in the changes in Western society in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century An architect is a licensed individual who leads a design team in the Planning and Design of buildings and participates in oversight of Building Construction Sir Hugh Maxwell Casson, KCVO, RA, RDI, ( 23 May 1910 – 15 August 1999) was a British Architect It was designed by Leslie Martin, Peter Moro and Robert Matthew from the LCC's Architects' Department; Martin was just 39 when he was appointed to lead the design team in late 1948. Sir John Leslie Martin KBE ( Manchester, 17 August 1908 &ndash 28 July 1999) was an English Architect Sir Robert Hogg Matthew (1906 - 1975 was a Scottish Architect and a leading proponent of Modernism. Martin designed the structure as an 'egg in a box', a term he used to describe the separation of the curved auditorium space from the surrounding building and the noise and vibration of the adjacent railway viaduct. Sir Thomas Beecham used similar imagery, calling the building a 'giant chicken coop'. Sir Thomas Beecham 2nd Baronet, CH (29 April 1879 &ndash 8 March 1961 was a British conductor and Impresario. ^[5]

Walking through the Appearing Rooms fountain installation, by Danish artist Jeppe Hein, outside the RFH during reopening celebrations after 2007 refurbishment

The building was substantially altered in 1964 by adding the foyers and terraces to the river side of the building and more dressing rooms to the rear. Year 1964 ( MCMLXIV) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the 1964 Gregorian calendar. Alterations to the facades facing the river removed the playful Scandinavian Modernism of the building's primary public face in favour of a plainer and hard-edged style. Modernism describes an array of Cultural movements rooted in the changes in Western society in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century The building's original entrance sequence was much compromised by these changes and the later additions of raised concrete walkways around the building to serve the neighbouring Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and The Hayward, built in 1967/8 and also part of Southbank Centre. The Queen Elizabeth Hall ( QEH) is a Music venue on the South Bank in London, England that hosts daily classical, Jazz The Purcell Room is a concert and performance venue which forms part of the Southbank Centre, one of central London 's leading cultural complexes The Hayward is an Art gallery within the Southbank Centre, part of an area of major arts venues on the South Bank of the River Thames Southbank Centre is a complex of artistic venues located in London, UK, on the South Bank of the River Thames between County Hall

The Royal Festival Hall undergoing renovation work.

The building underwent a substantial renovation between 2005 and 2007 led by Allies and Morrison Architects aimed at improving the poor acoustics (which Simon Rattle said made performers 'lose the will to live')^[6], production access and flexibility of the auditorium and the general quality of fabric, entrance spaces and cafe and the layouts of the foyers. Allies and Morrison is a London -based architectural practice founded by Bob Allies and Graham Morrison in 1984 WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Sir Simon Denis Rattle, CBE, FRSA, (born January The interior of the concert hall space was almost entirely intact until this re-modelling, which saw its stage canopy and walls rebuilt in plainer more rectangular forms. This was carried out in the face of opposition from conservationists, led by the Twentieth Century Society.

A row of seven shop/catering units has been added on the river side of the hall (with offices upstairs) and the section of the riverside walk next to these was improved. This has released space inside the original building which had been used for shops. The hall officially reopened to the public in June 2007 with a concert by the heavy metal band Motörhead, opening Jarvis Cocker's Meltdown. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Jarvis Branson Cocker (born 19 September 1963 is an English musician best known for fronting the band Pulp. Meltdown is an annual English festival held in London, featuring a mix of music art performance and film The refurbishment is expected to cost in the region of £91 million. [1] A film has been made documenting the refurbishment, entitled This Is Tomorrow; it is directed by Paul Kelly and produced by Andrew Hinton. The soundtrack was composed by the band Saint Etienne who performed it at the film's première in the Festival Hall.

A large head and shoulders bust of Nelson Mandela (by Ian Walters, 1985) stands on the walkway between the hall and Hungerford Bridge approach viaduct. Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (xolíɬaɬa mandéːla born 18 July 1918 is a former President of South Africa, the first to be elected in fully representative Ian Homer Walters ( April 9 1930 – August 6 2006) was an English sculptor. The Hungerford Bridge crosses the River Thames in London, and lies between Waterloo Bridge and Westminster Bridge. Originally made in glass-fibre it was repeatedly vandalised until re-cast in bronze. Skateboarders, who have long congregated in the undercroft of the neighbouring Queen Elizabeth Hall (considered to be London's most iconic skateboarding area) and now constitute a notable feature of the Southbank Centre, may soon be moved on if this area of the centre is redeveloped. The Queen Elizabeth Hall ( QEH) is a Music venue on the South Bank in London, England that hosts daily classical, Jazz

See also

• List of major concert halls

Notes

1. ^ RFH.co.uk
2. ^ The Festival of Britain - Building the Future, accessed 1 April 2007
3. ^ The Times, 21 November 1950, p. A concert hall is a cultural building which serves as performance venue chiefly for classical instrumental music Events 527 - Byzantine Emperor Justin I names his nephew Justinian I as co-ruler and successor to the throne Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. 6
4. ^ The Times, 5 May 05 1951, p. 4
5. ^ Jefferson, p. 102
6. ^ The Independent, 17 June 2007

References

• Jefferson, Alan(ed) (1979). Sir Thomas Beecham. London: Macdonald and Jane's. ISBN 035404205x.  

External links

• Southbank Centre website (Bookings for RFH, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and The Hayward)
• Fluid Structures (Engineers for the new entrance canopies)
• Allies and Morrison website (Architects of 2003-7 upgrades)
• The Guardian of October 13, 1949 on the laying of the foundation stone
• http://www.flickr.com/groups/southbankcentre/ (A Flickr group dedicated to pictures of the Southbank Centre)
• http://www.thisistomorrow.co.uk/ (A website for the film by Southbank Centre Artists In Residence Saint Etienne about the history of the site)