Holywell Music Room

The Holywell Music Room stands in Oxford’s city centre on Holywell Street. It belongs to Wadham College and was finished in 1748. Architects credit Dr Thomas Camplin, vice-principal of St Edmund Hall, with its design. William Hayes probably supervised the work. The room was built to hold chamber music and still serves that purpose today. The building introduced Haydn’s symphonies to 18th-century England. Between 1788 and 1791 his works were performed most often in the room. In 1791 he planned to visit but could not attend at short notice. By the 1830s the space hosted auctions and exhibitions as well as concerts. The Oxford Philharmonic Society gave weekly concerts there during the 1870s. In 1910 the Oxford University Musical Union took a lease and the next year John Henry Mee wrote about the room. Inside, the auditorium seats two hundred and holds an organ that probably came from Holland in the 1800s. Chandeliers from Westminster Hall, used for George IV’s coronation, hang above the audience. The walls have seen recitals, orchestral evenings and modern chamber performances. The organ’s Dutch origins and the chandeliers from a royal coronation remain visible features. The room’s Grade II* listing recognises its historical importance.