“The Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra is looking to the provincial government for $2.6 million to help fix much-needed repairs to an acoustical shell at the Centennial Concert Hall that is currently in ‘disastrous’ shape,” reads an unsigned article in Wednesday’s (2/12) CBC News (Canada). “Trudy Schroeder, WSO executive director, … said the organization hasn’t received repair money from the Manitoba government despite repeated calls for help…. When the concert hall opened in the late 1960s, it had a mechanical shell installed that would descend from a storage place in the rafters … Mechanical aspects aren’t working right now and it would be too dangerous to use … ‘This broke down three years ago,’ she said…. As a Band-Aid solution, the symphony set up a wall of risers behind the performers to help with the sound, but Schroeder said that … musicians aren’t able to hear or communicate with each other as well [and] have had to compensate by playing harder and louder … some are getting repetitive strain injuries.… The concert hall is owned by the province…. A spokesperson for the province said the government is trying to co-ordinate the repair of the shell with other repairs at the concert hall.”
Posted February 19, 2019
