Edinburgh's first purpose-built new concert for more than a century is planned to be created in the heart of the city's New Town.
Edinburgh's first purpose-built new concert for more a century is planned to be created in the heart of the city's New Town.
Transcript
00:00 So the Denard Centre is just the bold type of project that can be achieved when public
00:10 and private sector work together and the Royal Bank of Scotland is delighted to be working
00:15 with Impact Scotland at the City Region Deal to help bring this vision to life.
00:20 This is going to be a sensational venue, both in its acoustics and in the environment and
00:25 the way in which the audience and the artists become as one.
00:30 Edinburgh has long been known as a vibrant centre of culture and arts and this is a once
00:35 in a lifetime opportunity to build the first purpose built concert hall in Edinburgh for
00:40 over 100 years.
00:42 The concert hall is pretty big in scale and it takes up most of the footprint with a small
00:47 only couple of metres on the surround as you walk round it.
00:51 It'll be perfect, it'll be a perfect venue for people all over Scotland from all over.
00:57 It'll bring in international acts that are out for this place, it'll be brilliant.
01:02 A hall for all genres of music, combinations of music and for the people of Scotland irrespective
01:09 of their musical taste, their age, their background, where they live, this is a hall for all in
01:15 which they can have a unique musical experience.
01:18 I've been working with the Calpines for eight years.
01:21 I started straight out of university.
01:23 I did two years in Glasgow on quite a large college and I was in charge of quite a large
01:30 area of the atrium which was pretty significant in size and then I went down to London and
01:34 I've worked on quite a few prestigious buildings down there but nothing like this, nothing
01:39 like a concert hall.
01:41 The concert hall is different because of the detail in it, the size of it, the sheer spans
01:47 you need to make for the actual hall itself.
01:50 I've never experienced anything like that.
01:52 Just the fact that it is made for music, it's really special to be singing and performing
01:57 in a room that was designed for what it is that you are doing and what's being received
02:01 by the audience.
02:02 If you're playing in rooms that are not built for music, often that can take away from the
02:08 feeling of the performance whereas being in a room where the acoustics are designed for
02:13 it to sound its total best and being able to see the faces of the people who are appreciating
02:18 it is a very special thing.
02:21 Whatever you're feeling, whatever emotion you've got, there's a song for it and that's
02:25 what I love and having just come back from Glastonbury, the crowd and the music, it just
02:35 warms my soul to be with my friends and to listen to music so I think this will be great
02:39 for the concert hall as well and hopefully some good gigs in the concert hall.
02:43 The most exciting thing is that after 30 years in which Toyota Nagata has established himself
02:50 as the premier acoustician, this is the only hall in Britain that enjoys the benefits of
02:57 Nagata's expertise.
03:00 There are no spaces like this in the UK.
03:03 The location is fundamental to the future success of this hall.
03:08 So if you think about it, you can come on the bus from Glenrothes or Inverness, you
03:12 can come from the borders on the train, you can come on the tram from Leith.
03:18 This is super accessible and without that accessibility we wouldn't be so confident
03:25 about it truly being a hall for all the people of Scotland.
03:30 It's pretty amazing because I love it, my friends love it and I want more people to
03:35 share that because if you're not listening to music you're missing out for sure.
03:40 So especially after Covid and this long time that many performers from all different genres
03:47 have been away from live work, it's a really special thing to be able to connect with your
03:53 audience in real time, have access to that connection that we have as humans through
03:58 music.
03:58 [Music]