“Plans to build a ‘world-class’ concert hall in London have been thrown into disarray after the government pulled its funding on Friday,” writes Kevin Rawlinson writes in Friday’s (11/4) Guardian (U.K.). “The project, which was proposed by the conductor Simon Rattle, was not affordable, the government said. The former chancellor George Osborne put up £5.5m to produce a detailed business case for the London Concert Hall to be developed. That followed a call from Rattle, who is due to take up the role of principal conductor at the London Symphony Orchestra next year, to build a better facility in London. But Osborne’s successors in the cabinet have decided that the project, also known as the Centre for Music, does not offer value for money for the taxpayer and is not affordable.… ‘London is already home to world-class culture and music venues, from the iconic Royal Albert Hall to the Barbican Hall and the Royal Festival Hall at the Southbank Centre,’ a government spokesman said…. A spokesperson for the mayor of London said: ‘This is bad news for London. World-class cities need world-class music venues like the Centre for Music.’ ”
Posted November 8, 2016
