The Oktyabrskiy Big Concert Hall (BKZ) (russian: italic=no, Большой концертный зал «Октя́брьский», Bol'shoy kontsertnyy zal «Oktyábr'skiy», Big Concert Hall "October") is a theatre located in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

, Russia. It hosts variety actors, rock musicians, and also dance and ballet collectives. Located in the Greek Square, it opened October 1967, inaugurated 50 years after the

October Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key mome ...

. The director of the hall, since 1988, has been Emma Lavrinovich.

History

The venue was built on the grounds of a former Greek Orthodox church (formerly known as the Greek Square). This is reflected in Joseph Brodsky's poem '' A Stop in a Desert''. The construction took place between 1961 and 1967, by a group headed by Aleksandr Zhuk. The project involved architects Valentin Kamensky and Jean Verzhbitsky, and the engineers Galkin and Maksimov. The building silhouette is strictly geometrical, the facade is decorated with a huge

stained-glass window Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

. Over the front entrance, there is a bronze frieze by sculptor

Mikhail Anikushin Mikhail Konstantinovich Anikushin (russian: Михаил Константинович Аникушин; (19 September 1917, Moscow – 18 May 1997, Saint Petersburg) was a famous Soviet and Russian sculptor. Among his most famous works are a m ...

. In 2007, the concert hall underwent necessary repairs. The works covered all systems of the building, taking place from July until October 2009.

Noted performers

* A-ha *

Aleksandr Panayotov Aleksandr Sergeyevich Panayotov (russian: Александр Серге́евич Панайотов; born 1 July 1984) is a Russian-Ukrainian singer and songwriter. He has recorded two albums so far. Eurovision Song Contest Aleksandr had made ...

Cesária Évora Cesária Évora GCIH (; 27 August 194117 December 2011), more commonly known as Cize, was a Cape Verdean singer-songwriter. She received a Grammy Award in 2004 for her album ''Voz d'Amor''. Nicknamed the "Barefoot Diva" for performing without ...

Charles Aznavour Charles Aznavour ( , ; born Shahnour Vaghinag Aznavourian, hy, Շահնուր Վաղինակ Ազնավուրեան, ; 22 May 1924 – 1 October 2018) was a French-Armenian singer, lyricist, actor and diplomat. Aznavour was known for his dist ...

Cliff Richard Sir Cliff Richard (born Harry Rodger Webb; 14 October 1940) is an Indian-born British musican, singer, producer, entrepreneur and philanthropist who holds both British and Barbadian citizenship. He has total sales of over 21.5 million s ...

Dean Reed Dean Cyril Reed (September 22, 1938 – June 13, 1986) was an American actor, singer-songwriter, director, and social activist who lived a great part of his adult life in South America and then in East Germany. Nicknamed the Red Elvis, Reed was ...

* Duke Ellington *

Elena Vaenga Elena Vaenga (russian: link=no, Елена Ваенга, real name Yelena Vladimirovna Khrulyova; born 27 January 1977 in Severomorsk, Russia) is a Russian singer, songwriter and actress. Her style of singing is author song, folk rock, Russian ch ...

* Elton John *

Emin Agalarov Emin Aras oghlu Agalarov ( az, Emin Araz oğlu Ağalarov, russian: Эмин Аразович Агаларов; born December 12, 1979), also known as Emin Arazovich Agalarov, is an Azerbaijani-Russian singer and businessman. He writes and perfo ...

James Blunt James Blunt (born James Hillier Blount; 22 February 1974) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. A former reconnaissance officer in the Life Guards regiment of the British Army, he served under NATO during the 1999 Kosovo War. After l ...

* José Carreras *

Joseph Kobzon Iosif (Joseph) Davydovich Kobzon (russian: link=no, Ио́сиф Давы́дович Кобзо́н; 11 September 1937 – 30 August 2018) was a Russian singer, known for his crooner style. Early life Kobzon was born to Jewish parents in th ...

Julio Iglesias Julio José Iglesias de la Cueva (; born 23 September 1943) is a Spanish singer, songwriter and former professional footballer. Iglesias is recognized as the most commercially successful Spanish singer in the world and one of the top record ...

Klavdiya Shulzhenko Klavdiya Ivanovna Shulzhenko (russian: Кла́вдия Ива́новна Шульже́нко, uk, Клавдія Іванівна Шульженко; – June 17, 1984) was a Soviet popular female singer and actress. Biography Shulzhenko ...

Leonid Utyosov Leonid Osipovich Utyosov or Utiosov (russian: link=no, Леонид Осипович Утёсов, uk, link=no, Леонід Йосипович Утьосов); real name Lazar (Leyzer) Iosifovich Vaysbeyn or Weissbein ()) (, Odesa – 9 March ...

Lyube Lyube ( rus, Любэ́, p=lʲʉˈbɛ) is a Russian rock band from Lyubertsy, a city in Moscow Oblast. Lyube's music is a mixture of several genres, with influences from both Russian folk music, rock, Russian chanson, and Soviet military songs ...

* Lyudmila Zykina * Мельница *

Mireille Mathieu Mireille Mathieu (; born 22 July 1946) is a French singer. She has recorded over 1200 songs in eleven languages, with more than 122 million records sold worldwide. Biography and career Early years Mireille Mathieu was born on 22 July 1946 in A ...

* Mstislav Rostropovich *

Nadezhda Kadysheva Nadezhda Nikitichna Kadysheva (russian: Надeжда Никитична Кадышeва, ; born 1 June 1959, Gorki, Leninogorsky District, Tatar ASSR) is Russian singer of Erzyan heritage, soloist of the Zolotoe Koltso. Honorary Citizen of Bug ...

Patricia Kaas Patricia Kaas (; born 5 December 1966) is a French singer. Her music is a mix of pop, cabaret, jazz, and chanson. Since the appearance of her 1988 debut album '' Mademoiselle chante...'', Kaas has sold over 17 million records worldwide. She h ...

Salvatore Adamo Salvatore Adamo (born November 1, 1943) is a Belgian-Italian musician, singer and composer, who is known for his romantic ballads. Adamo was born in Comiso, Sicily, Italy, and has lived in Belgium since the age of three, which is why he has dual ...

Sviatoslav Richter Sviatoslav Teofilovich Richter, group= ( – August 1, 1997) was a Soviet classical pianist. He is frequently regarded as one of the greatest pianists of all time, Great Pianists of the 20th Century and has been praised for the "depth of his int ...

Valery Leontiev Valery Yakovlevich Leontiev (russian: link=no, Валерий Яковлевич Леонтьев; born 19 March 1949) is a Soviet and Russian pop singer, sometimes songwriter and actor whose popularity peaked in the early 1980s. He was titled a ...

Notes

:1."Grand", "Large", "Big" and "Great" are all accepted translations of «Большой». However, "big" is most commonly used within the media in reference to the concert hall.

References

External links

* {{Sports venue and auditoriums in Saint Petersburg Music venues in Russia Entertainment in Saint Petersburg Theatres in Saint Petersburg Buildings and structures in Saint Petersburg 1967 establishments in Russia