dunard centre

The Dunard Centre, supported by Royal Bank of Scotland, will be Edinburgh’s first purpose-built music venue in 100 years. A vibrant, thriving hub for music of all kinds, the Dunard Centre will become home to the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, the Edinburgh International Festival and an amazing array of guest artists from the worlds of classical, pop, rock, folk, jazz, spoken word and electronica. It will be a creative, collaborative space that hums with activity all day every day, bringing exceptional live music to everyone.

As the UK’s first Nagata Acoustics concert hall this landmark project will deliver life-enhancing, life-changing experiences for audiences of all backgrounds, cementing Edinburgh’s international reputation as a year-round cultural capital. No seat in the 1000-seater auditorium will be further than 25m away from the stage; an intimacy that will create extraordinary connections between the world’s best performers and the world’s best crowds.

Though the site for the Dunard Centre is little bigger than a football pitch, the ingenious building scheme conceived by David Chipperfield Architects also includes a generous series of additional areas for music lovers and community groups, including workshop rooms, bars and a welcoming inside/outside café space. These drop-in destinations, together with the hall itself, will create an open space in an open precinct, right in the middle of Edinburgh’s historic heart.

CURRENT STATUS

Planning permission was granted by City of Edinburgh Council in November 2021 and the City Region Deal Joint Committee approved the business case in March 2022.

Site clearance and enablement works, including the careful demolition of a five-storey office block, reached practical completion in June 2024. Main construction is expected to start in early 2025.

In parallel, work on community engagement began: several waves of citizen research have been rolled out across 2023-24 and consultation with a wide range of music, cultural and community stakeholders is ongoing to lay the foundations for a far-reaching, collaborative framework for engagement and learning opportunities.

Total City Region Deal Investment: £10 million UK Government, £10 million Scottish Government and £5 million City of Edinburgh.

.To find out more about this incredible space and the charitable trust overseeing the project, visit the Dunard Centre’s website 

Lead Contact: Jo Buckley; info@impactscotland.org.uk

Last updated: 16 August 2024