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Abravanel Hall
Abravanel Hall, is home to the Utah Symphony Orchestra, and part
of the Salt Lake County Center for the Arts. Adjcent to Temple Square
and the Salt Palace on South Temple Street this architectural masterpiece
has become a landmark. Besides symphony performances, the hall also
hosts numerous concerts and special events.
Abravanel Hall was created specifically to provide an environment
of acoustical excellence by Dr.Cyril M. Harris, who was the acoustical
consultant for the remodeled Avery Fisher Hall in New York City,
the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. and Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis,
all of witch are known for their acoustical excellence. Abravanel
Hall formerly known as Symphony Hall, was so named in May 1993 to
the beloved Maestro Maurice Abravanel, conductor of the Utah Symphony
and advocate for all the arts in Utah.
Abravanel Hall is actually a concrete building within a brick building.
Inside these two outer shells stands the beautiful concert hall.
Designed strictly as a concert hall, the stage has no proscenium;
rather it is an extension of the audience. The form of the hall
is rectangular, which is characteristic of the world's finest symphony
halls, such as "The Grosser Musikverinssaal" in Vienna,
the "Concertgebouw" in Amsterdam (Netherlands), the "Avery
Fisher Hall" in Washington D.C and the "Symphony Hall"
in Boston.
To reach the hall you must pass through sound lock corridors which
are designed to prevent the confusion and noise from the lobby from
spilling into the concert hall. The interior of the hall is dominated
by convex curved surfaces for both the walls and ceilings. Not only
these designs, but also the basic materials were carefully chosen
by Dr. Harris and the architects for acoustical purposes. Suspended
from the ceiling are six 16 x 16 foot brass chandeliers with 18,000
hand cut beads and prisms of Bohemian crystals imported from Austria
and Czechoslovakia.
The four-story lobby is crowned with a ceiling of white oak and
solid brass and adorned with more than 12,000 square feet of tempered
glass made in England. The lobby of the hall orients itself toward
the East and the former home of the Utah Symphony, the Salt Lake
Tabernacle and Temple Square.
Capacity - 2,811
Abravanel Hall
123 West South Temple
Salt Lake City Utah
tell : 001 801 355 2787
To arrange a tour, contact Beverly
Hawkins at 801-869-9092.
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