Today marks the 10th anniversary of the Roy Barnett Recital Hall at the UBC School of Music!
Thanks to the generosity of Roy Barnett (BComm’61) and his wife Gunilla Barnett, the School’s old recital hall was completely restored, updated, and reopened on Sept. 15th, 2010.
Here are photos of Barnett Hall while under construction (left) and in its present glory:
Renowned for its intimate setting and excellent acoustics, Barnett Hall is a vital campus space for young musicians, scholars, producers and educators. The recital hall hosts hundreds of student learning activities annually. Clarinetist Bernardino Asunçao won the 2020 UBC Concerto Competition held at Barnett Hall this past January:
Photo: Takumi Hayashi
Our many student ensembles, large and small, practice and perform in the Hall. Here’s Prof. Jose Franch-Ballester and the UBC Clarinet Ensemble performing Nino Rota’s 8 1/2 in October 2019:
Barnett Hall’s eight-channel surround sound environment makes it an important facility for our Music Technology students who showcase their cutting edge instruments twice every year at the Bang! Festival. Here is Danielle Lee demonstrating a touch-activated body suit that creates music through dance:
Roy Barnett Recital Hall also hosts around 40 professional concerts every year, featuring world-renowned artists such as Canadian pianist Angela Hewitt, who performed an intimate recital and masterclass this past winter.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Roy Barnett Recital Hall continues to be a hugely important venue, operating as a classroom for safe, socially distanced musical training.
Photo: Takumi Hayashi
Thank you, Roy and Gunilla!
WATCH: Renowned pianist and professor emerita Jane Coop performs works by Bach and Rachmaninoff in celebration of the 10th anniversary of Barnett Hall
