Letter: Give Shrewsbury a concert hall
Wednesday 2nd June 2010, 9:10AM BST.
Letter: I write to fully endorse the call for a concert hall in Shrewsbury (April 23).
As a musician for 36 years I have performed all over this country and abroad in various venues and it is disappointing to hear from the culture and leisure director of Shropshire Council there are no plans for such a venue.
I am one of many who greatly appreciate the facilities of the Severn Theatre but have been extremely disappointed by the poor quality of sound, particularly with the more specialised music events and generally feel that both the audience and musicians are not truly gaining the satisfaction they deserve.
Shropshire should be extremely proud of itself with its vast number of people involved with music. The search for the right venue for musicians is now even more important than ever.
Why not offer something unique to the well-deserving audience?
How often do we hear of a large professional orchestra visiting either Shrewsbury or Shropshire? It would become a great attraction if the right concert hall could be provided, what a reward it would be for all.
The culture director should take a long look around him. There is no doubt the demand for this specialised venue. And look how important geographically Shrewsbury is, especially for Wales, the nearest concert halls being Birmingham or Manchester.
Philip I Andrews MBE
Salop Sheet Music Ltd
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So, the Severn Theatre has poor sound quality does it?
Mr Andrews obviously knows what he’s talking about, so I am prepared to believe him. And I sympathise that this building is not giving the public the satisfaction that they deserve and have paid for. It might be one reason why the theatre is once again asking for generous subsidies.
But poor sound quality is yet another aspect of the theatre building which makes one wonder when the project management credentials of those behind creating it will be put under scrutiny and whether they’ll be let loose on similar publicly-funded buildings in the future.
How much were the “experts” paid for their involvement in the construction of a building with poor sound quality and that cannot be used to stage decent concerts?
With a bit of professionalism and knowledge, the theatre could have been designed and constructed in such a way that it was able to serve as a concert hall as well as a theatre, thereby serving more people and avoiding the need to even consider building a second venue during these times of economic hardship.
Truly, the people in charge of throwing public money at such projects are going to have to change their mind-sets.
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How about something not aimed at an audience who are already well catered for? This call for a Concert Hall comes from ‘those with the loudest voices’
How about supporting a venue to interest the younger people of Shrewsbury? I pity the young people of this town and it is little wonder that the more-open minded among them leave at the first opportunity.
Ignore the loudest voices and support better provision for the often seen, but seldom heard younger generation of Shrewsbury.
Support (Diverse) Live Music
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“Give Shrewsbury a concert hall” With what my dear fellow? They have already shown utter contempt for the local public purse by running at at a £500,000 loss over the past 12 months. The local council cant find £2,000 to amend the out door entertainment licence for the concerts in the quarry but they can find £30,000,000 for that OAP, middle class wart by the river. No doubt the budget set aside for running costs will be a similar amount for the following year. As with most government funded projects the moment you display financial competence is the moment they cut your grant. First port of call must be the premium friends of theatre severn, as most of the names on there have off shore business interests and are more than capable of supporting your clique.
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