Symphony Hall

Symphony Hall stands in Birmingham’s city centre, a 2,262-seat concert venue opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1991. It is home to the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and hosts about 270 events every year. The hall’s interior follows the designs of Vienna’s Musikverein and Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw. Jazz, rock, pop, classical and world music share the stage alongside comedy, dance and spoken word. It also serves as part of the International Convention Centre complex. In 2016 the acoustics expert Leo Beranek ranked Symphony Hall the finest in the United Kingdom and seventh best in the world. A pre-opening test showed that a pin dropped on stage could be heard from every seat. The hall’s acoustic flexibility comes from a large reverberation chamber behind the stage, extending high along the sides and adding half as much space again. A canopy over the stage can be raised or lowered, while dampening panels adjust the sound to suit each performance. Concrete walls and ceiling, each 200 millimetres thick, block outside noise. The hall sits only 30 metres from a covered railway line, yet rubber cushions isolate it from vibrations. Double skins of concrete shield it from Broad Street traffic, and slow air ducts keep ventilation noise low. A 6,000-pipe organ, built by Johannes Klais Orgelbau in Bonn, was installed in 2001 and is now the UK’s largest mechanical-action organ. Through its Education and Community department, the hall works with around 12,000 young people and 6,000 adults each year.