The Glasshouse

The Glasshouse stands on Gateshead Quayside, a curved glass and stainless steel building designed by Foster + Partners. It overlooks the Tyne Bridge and the Gateshead Millennium Bridge, with views across Newcastle and Gateshead. The venue opened in 2004 as Sage Gateshead and was renamed in 2023. It is run by North Music Trust and supported by patrons including The Sage Group. The building cost over £70 million, largely funded by National Lottery grants. The Glasshouse is worth the journey for its role in musical education and concerts. It hosts Royal Northern Sinfonia, described by *The Guardian* as ‘no better chamber orchestra in Britain’. The venue programmes a wide range of music, from classical and jazz to rock, pop and folk. It has won awards for its design, inclusivity and environmental standards. The building also serves as a conference venue and offers learning courses for all ages. Visitors find three performance spaces inside the glass shell. The largest seats 1,700, while the Northern Rock Foundation Hall is smaller and flexible. Sage One is designed to be acoustically perfect, with adjustable ceiling panels and curtains. The gaps between the three separate buildings can be seen inside. The building is open to the public throughout the day, offering views of the quayside and bridges.