Menuhin Hall
Concert hall for world-renowned music school
Client: Yehudi Menuhin School
Location: Cobham, Surrey
Status: Complete
Yehudi Menuhin, widely considered to have been the greatest violinist of the 20th Century, was passionate in his devotion to the needs of young musicians and established his School to provide an environment in which gifted children from around the world could develop their talents to the highest level within a nurturing, stimulating and creative academic environment.
The Menuhin Hall is a new purpose-built, 316-seat concert hall designed with a 'supportive acoustic' for the highly gifted young musicians of the school as well as professional performances and recordings. The school provides highly specialised tuition in stringed instruments and the piano for about sixty boys and girls aged between eight and 18 years.
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The Hall immediately gained recognition with awards from RIBA as well as a Civic Trust Commendation and BCI Small Building Project Award, celebrating the success of the architects and engineers in delivering a building which not only fulfilled the aim of creating a technically superb acoustic, but also of ensuring total isolation from the incessant roar of M25 traffic hurtling past the School's grounds at not much more than a stones throw away.
All those who have performed, spoken, listened or recorded in the auditorium over the years, can testify to whole-hearted success on both counts!
“If I were asked what has been the school’s greatest moment over the last twenty one years, I would have to answer - the opening of the The Menuhin Hall with Slava Rostropovich conducting the school orchestra. At last the school has a performing space worthy of an institution with an international reputation, and what a change this has brought to levels of performance.”
— Nicholas Chisholm, Headmaster
“An absolute gem of a building with a phenomenally low budget. In nearly two decades of the British Construction Industry Awards, few projects have come so close to matching all the winning criteria. This delightful building demonstrates that traditional methods of design and procurement can still work extremely well when carried out with strong client leadership, commitment by all parties, and good communication.”
— BCIA Awards Citation
Awards
2006 RIBA Award
2006 British Construction Industry Award (BCIA)
2008 Civic Trust Awards: Commendation