Hamer Hall, formerly the Melbourne Concert Hall, is an Australian

concert hall A concert hall is a cultural building with a stage (theatre), stage that serves as a performance venue and an auditorium filled with seats. This list does not include other venues such as sports stadia, dramatic theatres or convention ...

. The 2,466-seat hall, the largest indoor venue at the

Arts Centre Melbourne Arts Centre Melbourne, originally known as the Victorian Arts Centre and briefly called the Arts Centre, is a performing arts centre consisting of a complex of theatres and concert halls in the Melbourne Arts Precinct, located in the central M ...

, is mostly used for

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...

l and

contemporary music Contemporary music is whatever music is produced at the current time. Specifically, it could refer to: Genres or audiences * Adult contemporary music * British contemporary R&B * Christian adult contemporary * Christian contemporary hit radio * Con ...

performances. It was designed by Roy Grounds as part of the cultural centre which comprised the

National Gallery of Victoria The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and list of most visited art museums in the world, most visited art mu ...

and the Arts Centre Melbourne. It was opened as the Melbourne Concert Hall in 1982 (the theatres building opened in 1984) and was renamed Hamer Hall in honour of Sir Rupert Hamer (the 39th

Premier of Victoria The premier of Victoria is the head of government of the state of Victoria in Australia. The premier leads the Cabinet of Victoria and selects its ministers. The premier is appointed by the governor of Victoria, must be a member of the Vic ...

) shortly after his death in 2004.

2010 redevelopment

Construction on the A$136 million inside–out redevelopment of Hamer Hall was due to begin in 2010. The venue's redevelopment was the first stage of the Southbank Cultural Precinct Redevelopment and was delivered through an alliance between Arts Victoria, Major Projects Victoria, the Arts Centre, Ashton Raggatt McDougall and Baulderstone. The redevelopment included a new outlook to the city and new connections to central

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

St Kilda Road St Kilda Road is a street in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is part of the Melbourne central business district, locality of Melbourne which has the postcode of 3004, and along with Swanston Street forms a major spine of the city. St Kilda ...

and the

Yarra River The Yarra River or historically, the Yarra Yarra River, (Kulin languages: ''Berrern'', ''Birr-arrung'', ''Bay-ray-rung'', ''Birarang'', ''Birrarung'', and ''Wongete'') is a perennial river in south-central Victoria, Australia. The lower st ...

, new and expanded

foyer A lobby is a room in a building used for entry from the outside. Sometimes referred to as a foyer, entryway, reception area or entrance hall, it is often a large room or complex of rooms (in a theatre, opera house, concert hall, showroom, cine ...

spaces, improved amenities, new stairs, improved disability access,

escalator An escalator is a moving staircase which carries people between floors of a building or structure. It consists of a Electric motor, motor-driven chain of individually linked steps on a track which cycle on a pair of tracks which keep the st ...

s and lifts as well as improved

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 ...

, new

auditorium An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances. For movie theaters, the number of auditoriums is expressed as the number of screens. Auditoriums can be found in entertainment venues, community halls, and t ...

seating and staging systems. The hall was reopened on 26 July 2012 with a Hamer Hall Opening Concert featuring Caroline O'Connor,

k.d. lang Kathryn Dawn Lang (born November 2, 1961), known by her stage name k.d. lang (stylised in all lowercase), is a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter and occasional actress. Lang has won Juno Awards and Grammy Awards for her musical pe ...

, Eddie Perfect and Lior with a live orchestra. The project later won the AIA Melbourne Prize for the architects Ashton Raggatt McDougall for its overall contribution to the civic life of Melbourne.

Awards and nominations

Music Victoria Awards

The

Music Victoria Awards The Music Victoria Awards (previously known as The Age EG Awards and The Age Music Victoria Awards) are an annual awards night celebrating music from the Australian state of Victoria. They commenced in 2006 and are awarded in Melbourne Music W ...

are an annual awards night celebrating Victorian music. They commenced in 2006. The award for Best Venue was introduced in 2016. ! , - , Music Victoria Awards of 2018 , Hamer Hall, Melbourne , Best Venue (Over 500 Capacity) , , rowspan="3", , - , Music Victoria Awards of 2019 , Hamer Hall, Melbourne , Best Venue (Over 500 Capacity) , , - ,

Music Victoria Awards of 2020 The Music Victoria Awards of 2020 are the 15th Annual Music Victoria Awards and consist of a series of awards, presented on 8 December 2020. For the first time, an ''Outstanding Woman in Music Award'' and ''Best Producer Award'' will be awarded. ...

, Hamer Hall, Melbourne , Best Venue (Over 500 Capacity) , , - , 2021 Music Victoria Awards , Hamer Hall, Melbourne , Best Venue (Over 500 Capacity) , , , -

References

Music venues in Melbourne Concert halls in Australia Music venues completed in 1982 1982 establishments in Australia Landmarks in Melbourne Buildings and structures in the City of Melbourne (LGA) Southbank, Victoria Melbourne Symphony Orchestra {{VictoriaAU-struct-stub

2010 redevelopment

Awards and nominations

Music Victoria Awards

See also

References