Freemasons' Hall, Edinburgh

Freemasons' Hall in Edinburgh, Scotland, is the headquarters of Scottish Freemasonry, the Grand Lodge of Scotland. It is located at 96 George Street. A Category A listed building, the hall was built during 1911–1912 and was designed by the Edinburgh architect Alexander Hunter Crawford. Crawford was himself a prominent freemason, and the hall is described as his most important work. The four-storey building also features a museum of masonic treasures and fhe facade features a large statue of St Andrew, by the sculptor Henry Snell Gamley. The building replaced a previous hall erected in 1858, designed by David Bryce.

1. Concerts


1. Concerts

In 1918, after the First World War, the Edinburgh Classical Concerts series resumed with a recital by Vladimir Rosing. The hall was used for a series of 10 chamber concerts by Reginald Jacques and his Jacques Orchestra at the first Edinburgh International Festival in 1947. Soloists included Kathleen Ferrier, Peter Pears and Leon Goossens. It became a regular festival venue in the first decades of the festival, and artists appearing in the hall included the celebrated instrumentalists Géza Anda, Martha Argerich, Pierre Boulez, Frans Brüggen, Dennis Brain, Adolf Busch, Clifford Curzon, Rudolf Firkušný, Pierre Fournier, Szymon Goldberg, Yehudi Menuhin, Gerald Moore, Itzhak Perlman, Jacqueline du Pré, Mstislav Rostropovitch, Segovia, Rudolf Serkin, Ravi Shankar, Guilhermina Suggia, Isaac Stern, and Wolfgang Schneiderhan, and groups such as the Amadeus Quartet, Beaux Arts Trio, Juilliard Quartet, London Mozart Players. I Musici, and the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra, led by Karl Münchinger.

Singers included Pierre Bernac, Mattiwilda Dobbs, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Hans Hotter, Gerhard Hüsch, Victoria de los Ángeles, Julius Patzak, Peter Pears, Hermann Prey, Aksel Schiotz, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Irmgard Seefried, Gérard Souzay, Eleanor Steber, Shirley Verrett, and many others, together with the composer-accompanists Benjamin Britten and Francis Poulenc. During the late 1960s and early 1970s, chamber music and recitals were increasingly shared with Leith Town Hall and St Cuthbert's Church, and by the end of the third decade of the festival major artists came less frequently to the Freemasons' Hall and it became more of a 'niche' venue for string quartets and small scale vocal ensembles.

1. References

Nearby Places View Menu

Rose Street

Rose Street is a street in the New Town of Edinburgh, Scotland. It is a narrow street running parallel between Princes Street and George Street. Today, it is principally a shopping street, however, it is well known for its many bars and public houses.

Landmark Nightlife

Northern Lighthouse Board

The Northern Lighthouse Board (NLB) is the general lighthouse authority for Scotland and the Isle of Man. It is a non-departmental public body responsible for marine navigation aids around coastal areas.

Government Maritime

Lodge of Edinburgh (Mary's Chapel) No. 1

The Lodge of Edinburgh (Mary's Chapel), No.1, is a Masonic Lodge in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is designated number 1 on the Roll (list) of lodges of the Grand Lodge of Scotland, and as it possesses the oldest existing minute of any masonic lodge still operating (31 July 1599) and the first historical reference of a non-operative or speculative freemason being initiated as a member (1634), it is reputed to be the oldest Masonic Lodge not only in Scotland, but the world. It is often styled Mary's Chapel or The Ancient Lodge of Edinburgh Mary's Chapel, the former of which derives from its ancient origins, where it first met within the old chapel of St Mary's on Niddrie's Wynd in Edinburgh, which was demolished to make way for Edinburgh's South Bridge, which were completed in 1788. The lodge meets at 19 Hill Street, in the New Town, in a building erected in the 1820s. Designed by architect George Angus, it was built as a "Subscription Baths and Drawing Academy", and was purchased by the lodge in 1893. It is a category A listed building. The building is used as an arts venue during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe each August, when it is known as the Hill Street Theatre. It is the longest-standing continuously operating Fringe venue, and was operated for over twenty years by Universal Arts, but is now operated by Edinburgh Little Theatre.

Event Landmark

Church of Scotland offices

The Church of Scotland offices are located in the centre of Edinburgh, Scotland (in the New Town), at 121 George Street. These imposing buildings are popularly known in Church circles as "one-two-one". They were designed in a Scandinavian-influenced style by the architect Sydney Mitchell and built in 1909–1911 for the United Free Church of Scotland. Following the union of the Church of Scotland and the United Free Church of Scotland in 1929 the church offices were henceforth used by the newly united church. A matching extension, incorporating a ground floor bookshop, was built in the 1930s on the east side (119 George Street). A proposed matching extension on the west side (replacing the still-existing buildings at 123 George Street) was never built. 123 George Street is, however, owned by the Church of Scotland and has been incorporated into the offices. The church offices also incorporate a chapel near the main entrance and a staff canteen in the basement. The title used is always "church offices" and never "headquarters". There are periodically suggestions within the Church of Scotland that the current church offices should be sold, relocating to new premises outside Edinburgh. Such a decision could only be taken by the General Assembly; so far no proposals have been made. The offices of the Moderator, Principal Clerk, General Treasurer, Law Department and all the church councils are located at the church offices. The one major exception is the Social Care Council (CrossReach) which is located outside the city centre at Charis House, 47 Milton Road East, Edinburgh. The building is managed and maintained by the Church of Scotland's Facilities Management Department.

Church Government