City Halls, Glasgow

Glasgow’s City Halls and The Old Fruitmarket re-opened their doors to the public on Friday 13 January 2006 with an opening concert from the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.  The venue has made a huge impact in music making in Scotland.   By June 2006 it had welcomed over 100,000 visitors including 10,000 who have been involved in activities as part of the venue's learning programme.  Gavin Reid, director of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra described he first six months as "a triumph".

The revitalised City Halls and The Old Fruitmarket are a superb addition to Glasgow's arts, entertainment and education scene.

Funded with the help of a £950,000 contribution from the Scottish Arts Council National Lottery Fund, Glasgow’s City Halls and The Old Fruitmarket are one of the most exciting music spaces in Europe - the new home of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, the Scottish Music Centre and the hub for music education in the city.

The change that is most noticeable during the daytime is that the venue is a constant hive of creative activity. The vast rehearsal and music education facilities will be put to full use by schools, community groups and professionals alike.

The refurbishment began on 5 January 2004. Ensuring that its world renowned acoustics were maintained, City Halls has been radically transformed. The traditional shoebox auditorium has had its stage lowered and extended.  This has resulted in the lowering of the stalls floor and inclusion of raked seating for improved sight lines. Great care has been taken to ensure that the larger acoustic volume retains the pristine quality of the original. 

The late inclusion of the Grade ‘A’ listed Old Fruitmarket into the scheme meant that one of Scotland’s most loved music venues was saved.

Moving from their offices in Glasgow’s West End, The Scottish Music Centre will have a wonderful music library and IT suite looking onto Candleriggs. This new shopfront site will bring wider exposure to the centre's work and facilities.

The Scottish Music Centre maintains three comprehensive databases: the Catalogue, Concert and Directory listings. They collect and store up-to-date online News and Features where you can find Scottish Music News, competitions, music vacancies and a Current Scene overview. The Scottish Music Centre online shop stocks thousands of Scottish titles, some rare, ranging from cds to sheet music.

There will be a large strand of workshops and courses open to the public ranging from rare instrument classes to DJ workshops and a choir. The organisations providing the various aspects of the education programme are the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Celtic Connections, Glasgow Educational Services, the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and the Scottish Music Centre.

Glasgow Cultural Enterprises (GCE) is one of Glasgow’s largest arts organisations.  Glasgow Cultural Enterprises Ltd. is the operator of:

The Glasgow Royal Concert Hall. Website: The Glasgow Royal Concert Hall
City Halls and the Old Fruitmarket. Website: City Halls and Old Fruitmarket
Celtic Connections. Website: Celtic Connections

For further information contact Glasgow Cultural Enterprises

Website Glasgow Cultural Enterprises

Mailing Address:
2 Sauchiehall Street,
Glasgow,
G2 3NY
Scotland

Telephone 0141 353 8080
Fax 0141 353 8001