Shanghai Concert Hall Overview & Map Weather Transportation Information
Known as the palace hall of classical music, the Shanghai Concert Hall holds over 1,200 seats, whose main performance area reaches 145.35 square meters (width 11.1 meters, length 13.1 meters) and elevated orchestra pit 29.74 square meters. Additionally, it is decorated with marble pillars, Roman chandeliers and other architectural designs.
The development
Established in 1930, the Concert Hall used to be the best cinema in Shanghai. This was in the days when movie theaters were considered major venues of culture. The first movie shown was a 1929 release "Broadway" starring Glenn Tryon, Evelyn Brent, Merna Kennedy, and Thomas E. Jackson. It was a combination of a musical and crime film.
Originally called the Nanking Theater, it was designed by two Shanghai architects, Fan Wenzhao and Zhao Shen. It was renamed Beijing Theater in 1949 and changed to Shanghai Concert Hall (SCH) in 1959 for specially then being chosen for best formal concert stage. Many widely known musical celebrities such as conductor Tang Muhai and Zhang Guohai started their careers here.
The outstanding exterior
The building, located on the central of downtown, is a typical classical architecture in a European style. Sixteen huge marble pillars are seen when audiences step into the lobby, and the front hall is deliberately ornamented with elegant patterns of slightly solemnized color, which is very much in harmony with the music played inside.
The popularity
The acoustics are so good that many world-famous artists have been attracted to perform in this hall, including violinists maestro Isaac Stern, Salvatore Accardo, Pinchas Zukerman, Choliang Lin and cellists Yoyo Ma, Jian Wang; pianists Alieda de Larrocha, FU Chong, YING Chunzhong as well as the Philadelphia Chamber Orchestra, Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, China Symphony Orchestra and many others have given high appraisals after giving their successful concerts here. Major orchestras in this city such as the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Shanghai Broadcasting Symphony Orchestra, Shanghai Opera, Shanghai Traditional Chinese Orchestra and Shanghai National Music Ensemble have chosen this hall for their regular concerts. Audiences could enjoy more than 200 concerts here annually.
The relocation
As one of the famous architectural and cultural heritages of Shanghai, government decided to relocate the building instead of demolishing it and building a new hall while taking City's Downtown Reconstruction Project. It has taken one year to hoist the landmark building 3.38 meters and move it to a new location over 66.4 meters southeast to its previous home since Sept. 2002.
New features
After relocation, the new hall is four times larger than the old one. It includes enlarging stage, adding rooms and facilities, rebuilding lobbies on south and west sides. The hall, surrounded with trees and grassland, is the only building inside the Music Park.