Bridgewater Hall

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The Bridgewater Hall

The Bridgewater Hall is an international concert venue in Manchester, England. It is a world-class venue that cost around £42 million to build and currently hosts over 250 performances a year. It is located in Lower Mosley Street.

2006 sees the 10th anniversary of its opening with special performances by La Scala Philharmonic, St Petersburg Philharmonic and the well-known pianist Alfred Brendel.

Since its opening on 11 September 1996 it has been the home of the Hallé Orchestra and the Manchester Boys' Choir and is a regular venue for concerts of the BBC Philharmonic and Manchester Camerata. From September 2002 it has been home to the Halle Youth Orchestra and Youth Choir; founded for musicians under the age of nineteen who do not have the benefit of full time musical education.

The venue is named 'Bridgewater' after the 3rd Duke of Bridgewater who commissioned the Bridgewater Canal which crosses Manchester. The canal basin adjacent to the hall is not, however, a branch of the Bridgewater Canal, but of the Rochdale Canal.

Inside, the central focal point of the hall is a magnificent pipe organ (with 5,500 pipes) built by Marcussen & Son, which dominates the 2,400 seat auditorium, completely covering the rear wall with a beautiful blend of wood and burnished metal.

The main auditorium sits on the foundation on earthquake-proof isolation bearings (consisting of steel springs) which insulate it from noise and vibration from the adjacent road and Metrolink line.[1]

1 Events in 2007
2 Images
3 See also
4 External links

The Hall hosts an eclectic range of musical events. As well as a wide range of classical music concerts such as those by the Hallé, BBC Philharmonic and Manchester Camerata, artists/orchestras who are performing at the Bridgewater Hall in 2007 include: