Sheku Kanneh-Mason and CBSO director Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla take tour of Birmingham Symphony Hall redevelopment
In addition to their BBC Proms performance, Sheku Kanneh-Mason and City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra’s music director, Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla took a tour of Symphony Hall’s £13.2million redevelopment last week.
Winner of the 2016 BBC Young Musician competition, Sheku made chart history with his debut album, Inspiration, which was released last year and features his personal selection of music.
It was recorded in Birmingham and his hometown of Nottingham with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO) and music director Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla.
Sheku said: “I recorded my debut album at Symphony Hall, Birmingham.
"I think their ambition to create a platform for talented local musicians to perform is a great one – as many artists as possible should have the opportunity to create and share music in this remarkable venue”.
Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla added: “This is one of the greatest halls in the world and yet, so many people don’t have an idea it is there.
"I hope that this new entrance and the opening up of Symphony Hall to the city and the world will attract the attention it deserves.”
The Making an Entrance project is a major transformation of Symphony Hall’s public foyer areas. In addition to a state-of-the-art foyer performance space for free and low-cost activities, there will be dedicated spaces for learning and participation projects.
There will also be an enhanced food and beverage offer, refurbished toilets, additional disabled WCs and a Space to Change facility.
Nick Reed, chief executive for Town Hall Symphony Hall, said: “Symphony Hall was created for Birmingham as the home of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.
"The redevelopment of our foyers will create spaces where communities can congregate, businesses can connect to the arts, and new ways of learning and participation through music can be developed”.
Tim Pile, chair of Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “We recognise the cultural and economic importance of music, which employs 2,000 across the LEP geography and accounts for over £250m of direct and indirect spend from music tourism across the West Midlands”.
To find out about Town Hall Symphony Hall’s performances and events, click here.
