Full name | Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall |
---|---|
Address | Class of 1975 Walk, Princeton, New Jersey 08544 |
Public transit | Princeton Branch (The Dinky) |
Owner | Princeton University |
Type | Concert venue |
Capacity | 900 |
Construction | |
Broke ground | 1892 |
Opened | 9 June 1894 |
Renovated | 1984-85 |
Website | |
princeton.edu/richaud | |
Alexander Hall | |
Coordinates | 40°20′54″N74°39′38.1″W / 40.34833°N 74.660583°W |
Architect | William Appleton Potter |
Part of | Princeton Historic District (ID75001143 [1] ) |
Added to NRHP | 27 June 1975 |
Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall is a historic 900-seat [2] Richardsonian Romanesque performance hall at Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey. It is home to both the Princeton University Orchestra and the Princeton Symphony Orchestra.
The name of the hall honors three generations of the Alexander family, who all served as University trustees. Funding for the building was sourced from Mrs. Harriet Crocker Alexander, who donated $350,000 ($11.9 million in 2023 dollars) [3] so its name would honor her in-laws: her husband Charles B. Alexander (Class of 1870), his father Henry M. Alexander (Class of 1840), a University trustee and member of the Committee on Commencement Arrangements, and his grandfather Reverend Dr. Archibald Alexander (the Presbyterian founder of the Princeton Theological Seminary and its first professor; honorary Princeton doctorate 1810). [4]
Alexander Hall was designed by architect William Appleton Potter. Construction on the building was completed in 1894, and Alexander Hall held its first annual Commencement ceremony on June 13 of that year. [3] After the Marquand Chapel caught fire, Protestant chapel services were held in the hall. [5]
Although Alexander Hall initially functioned as a space for hosting private University affairs — including commencement, faculty meetings, and popular talks — the space was renovated and expanded into a professional-class performance hall in the 1980s following a large donation from David Richardson (Class of 1966) and growing needs on campus for a proper performing space. In 1984, the auditorium within Alexander Hall was officially renamed to Richardson Auditorium.
Following its renovation in the 1980s, the hall now has an elevator-mounted orchestra pit, sound reflectors for improved acoustics, humidity-controlled instrument storage, and a Tiffany Glass mosaic named "Homeric Story". [3] Today, the building's turrets, rusticated brownstone, and red granite-walls frequently host concerts featuring ensembles and musicians, including conductor Gustavo Dudamel [6] in 2018 and 2019.
Until 2017, when construction on Princeton University's new $330 million performing-arts center was completed, the Princeton University Orchestra rehearsed in the hall thrice per week during the academic year. Following the opening of the Lewis Center Arts, the orchestra now holds its rehearsals in the 3,500 square-foot Lee Rehearsal Room (built for the ensemble) and moves to Richardson Auditorium on the week of the concert. [7]
Beyond music, the hall maintains a strong bond with the local community as a regular venue for town meetings, and it still occasionally serves as a venue for large student events, famous guest speakers, as well as for other various University affairs.
The Los Angeles Philharmonic, officially known in shorthand as LA Phil, is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. It has a regular season of concerts from October through June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and a summer season at the Hollywood Bowl from July through September. Gustavo Dudamel is the current music director, Esa-Pekka Salonen is conductor laureate, Zubin Mehta is conductor emeritus, and Susanna Mälkki is principal guest conductor. John Adams is the orchestra's current composer-in-residence.
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Severance Hall, also known as Severance Music Center, is a concert hall in the University Circle neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio, home to the Cleveland Orchestra. Opened in 1931 to give the orchestra a permanent home, the building is named for patrons John L. Severance and his wife, Elisabeth Huntingdon DeWitt Severance. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of Cleveland’s Wade Park District.
Westminster Choir College (WCC) is a historic conservatory of music currently operating on the campus of Rider University in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. Rider's College of Arts and Sciences, the college under which the historic institution has been reorganized, consists of Westminster Choir College as well as three additional schools.
Hill Auditorium is the largest performance venue on the University of Michigan campus, in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The auditorium was named in honor of Arthur Hill (1847-1909), who served as a regent of the university from 1901 to 1909. He bequeathed $200,000 to the university for the construction of a venue for lectures, musical performances, and other large productions. Opened in 1913, the auditorium was designed by Albert Kahn and Associates. It was renovated by the same firm beginning in 2002 and was re-opened in 2004.
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Deborah Borda is a retired American music executive.
The Philharmonie Luxembourg, also known officially as the Grande-Duchesse Joséphine-Charlotte Concert Hall, is a concert hall located in the European district in the Luxembourg City quarter of Kirchberg. Opened in 2005, it now plays host to 400 performances each year.
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The Princeton Symphony Orchestra is a professional U.S. orchestra based in Princeton, New Jersey. Rossen Milanov has been music director since 2009, leading the orchestra in critically acclaimed performances. All orchestra concerts take place at the 900-seat Richardson Auditorium, a historic concert hall located on the campus of Princeton University.
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The Princeton University Orchestra (PUO) is the flagship symphony orchestra of Princeton University. The ensemble tours internationally and includes over 100 musicians, almost all of whom are undergraduates at the university. Every academic year, the Princeton University Orchestra holds eight or nine concerts in Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall.