The Sheldon Concert Hall in St. Louis, Missouri was designed by noted

1904 World's Fair The Louisiana Purchase Exposition, informally known as the St. Louis World's Fair, was an World's fair, international exposition held in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, from April 30 to December 1, 1904. Local, state, and federal funds tota ...

architect

Louis C. Spiering Louis Clemens Spiering (May 8, 1874 — March 9, 1912) was an American architect and architecture professor based in St. Louis, Missouri, who worked on building designs for the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, St. Louis World's Fair of 1904 and oth ...

and built in 1912 as the home of the Ethical Society of St. Louis. Musicians and public speakers throughout the years have enjoyed the perfect

acoustics Acoustics is a branch of physics that deals with the study of mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids including topics such as vibration, sound, ultrasound and infrasound. A scientist who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician ...

of the Sheldon Concert Hall, earning The Sheldon its reputation as "The

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...

of St. Louis." Well-known singers and ensembles have performed at The Sheldon, and speakers such as Albert Einstein,

Dwight Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

and Ernest Hemingway have spoken from its stage. The St. Louis Chapter of the

League of Women Voters The League of Women Voters (LWV or the League) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan political organization in the United States. Founded in 1920, its ongoing major activities include registering voters, providing voter information, and advocating for vot ...

was founded in The Sheldon's Green Room. When the Ethical Society relocated to St. Louis County in 1964, The Sheldon became primarily a music venue. Then, in 1974, a former singer with the Duke Ellington Orchestra purchased the facility, transforming The Sheldon into a church and the site for many jazz and gospel concerts. A California attorney with a love for

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numb ...

purchased the building in 1984 at the urging of the Paganini String Quartet. He engaged Walter F. Gunn to restore the building and upon completion Gunn began operating The Sheldon in 1986 as a venue for concerts and community events. Determined to preserve and establish The Sheldon as one of St. Louis’ greatest cultural resources, Gunn founded the non-profit Sheldon Arts Foundation in 1988. Under Gunn's leadership the Sheldon was named one of the Best Loved Halls in America by touring musicians in Inside Performance Magazine hosting over 400 events per year. Gunn was awarded the prestigious Dawson Achievement Award for arts management from the Association of Performing Arts Professionals. Gunn wrote a song called “Sweet Sheldon” to save the Sheldon when it went up for sale. The song raised enough for the Foundation to purchase the building in 1991, and today the Sheldon Arts Foundation is governed by a 45-member Board of Directors. The Sheldon Concert Hall is the site of over 300 events each year, including jazz, folk and classical music concerts, featuring artists such as

Dave Brubeck David Warren Brubeck (; December 6, 1920 – December 5, 2012) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Often regarded as a foremost exponent of cool jazz, Brubeck's work is characterized by unusual time signatures and superimposing contrasti ...

, Wynton Marsalis,

José Carreras Josep Maria Carreras Coll (; born 5 December 1946), better known as José Carreras (, ), is a Spanish operatic tenor who is particularly known for his performances in the operas of Donizetti, Verdi and Puccini. Born in Barcelona, he made his de ...

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and composer. Hancock started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. He shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he help ...

, Doc Watson, Joan Baez, Willie Nelson,

Julian Bream Julian Alexander Bream (15 July 193314 August 2020) was an English classical guitarist and lutenist. Regarded as one of the most distinguished classical guitarists of the 20th century, he played a significant role in improving the public per ...

Itzhak Perlman Itzhak Perlman ( he, יצחק פרלמן; born August 31, 1945) is an Israeli-American violinist widely considered one of the greatest violinists in the world. Perlman has performed worldwide and throughout the United States, in venues that hav ...

, B.B. King, and Jessye Norman. The Sheldon's renovations continued in 2001 with the installation of five new stained-glass windows designed by Rodney Winfield. His designs, called "Theme and Variation", are designed to be seen both during the day and at night. The Sheldon is located in the Grand Center arts district of St. Louis.

Sheldon Art Galleries

The Sheldon Art Galleries encompass and feature exhibits on photography, architecture, St. Louis artists and collection, jazz history, emerging artists and children's art. Over 20 changing exhibitions are held each year.

References

External links

The Sheldon Concert Hall & Art Galleries

3D Virtual Tour of The Sheldon Concert Hall
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sheldon, The Art museums and galleries in Missouri Concert halls in Missouri Landmarks of St. Louis Museums in St. Louis Music venues in St. Louis Tourist attractions in St. Louis Midtown St. Louis 1912 establishments in Missouri