Royal Festival Hall in London

The Royal Festival Hall

> The Royal Festival Hall hosts classical orchestral concerts as well as jazz, rock and world music. The building is sound-proofed from noise from the nearby railway by cavity walls several feet thick.

> The only remaining building from the Festival of Britain in 1951, the Festival Hall is Grade I listed.

> The Festival Hall's light appearance (1) comes from the use of Derbyshire limestone; the green of the roof (2) from weathered copper. Designed by a team of young architects working at London County Council, their objective was to build a modernist concert hall that was welcoming and accessible to everyone, and to get away from the 19th-century European classicism normally used for public buildings.

> The canopies and stairs (3) are a recent addition that now connect the Festival Hall entrance with the lower-level riverside walk.

> Carpets in the Skylon restaurant (4) are among the interior features that have been kept in the original style.

> The auditorium has 'assisted resonance' - an electronic enhancement said to improve the sound quality.

> The Royal Festival Hall website can be seen here.