National Concert Hall Dublin

bodhrandude

Also check out Youtube one of the original Floyd concerts from 1980 at Earls Court is on there.

Andy From Sligo

was sorry for not pre-ordering the drinks before the intermission as the signs indicated when you entered the building , the queue for the bar(s) where crazy.

after finally getting served had literally a minute to down a pint of the black stuff and they wouldn't allow you to take the drink into the auditorium (not even if you transferred it to a plastic or paper cup like some venues let you)

so just a heads up for others going to the NCH who want a drink in the intermission ... huge queue as well for the blokes toilets as well in the intermission.

Muahahaha

peter4918 wrote: »

Slightly getting away from the acoustics of the place. What’s the parking like around there? Haven’t been yet but will be soon

On street parking is free after 7pm, provided you can find some. Id say youd get some on Hume Street/Ely Place or around the Green itself. If you want secure parking the Royal College of Surgeons car park is a few minutes walk away.

Andy From Sligo

heartbreaking passing the homeless in doorways on the way to and from the NCH - felt pretty guilty in a way, going to see a show with them sleeping out rough , makes you more than grateful at what you have

dasdog

I've heard people give out about the sound but I was only there twice in recent years

-Earlier this year to see Ronnie Spektor and it was okay
-Last year to see Autechre (in the dark) and I didn't notice as that kind of music loud and in almost complete darkness was some experience

I like the place - the bar is okay and it's good value and great if you are on the Luas - and whenever I've checked they've always had something interesting on in their listings.

Muahahaha

Andy From Sligo wrote: »

heartbreaking passing the homeless in doorways on the way to and from the NCH - felt pretty guilty in a way, going to see a show with them sleeping out rough , makes you more than grateful at what you have

yeah Im usually on O'Connell St once a week around 8pm and when you see the soup kitchens setting up and the crowds using them its really disconcerting. Walking by doorways and theres sleeping bags set up to sleep in later on. Its horrible to see and Ive never seen it as bad in Dublin.

Grid.

Yeah....it's very underwhelming for a prestigious venue and is due for redevelopment in the near future.

https://www.nch.ie/Online/default.asp?BOparam::WScontent::loadArticle::permalink=Newsroom-Government-Funding&BOparam::WScontent::loadArticle::context_id=

Andy From Sligo

Grid. wrote: »

Yeah....it's very underwhelming for a prestigious venue and is due for redevelopment in the near future.

https://www.nch.ie/Online/default.asp?BOparam::WScontent::loadArticle::permalink=Newsroom-Government-Funding&BOparam::WScontent::loadArticle::context_id=

that will be interesting to see what it will look like when its completed

bodhrandude

dasdog wrote: »

I've heard people give out about the sound but I was only there twice in recent years

-Earlier this year to see Ronnie Spektor and it was okay
-Last year to see Autechre (in the dark) and I didn't notice as that kind of music loud and in almost complete darkness was some experience

I like the place - the bar is okay and it's good value and great if you are on the Luas - and whenever I've checked they've always had something interesting on in their listings.

Yeah Four Tet done that this year at the Picnic, no stage lights just two desktop lamps around his equipment, brilliant gig too.

The high horse brigade

I was at this gig Tuesday and thought the sound was excellent. We were on the third row of the balcony in the centre so maybe it depends on your seat. I thought they did a good job of mixing the orchestra with amplified instruments and didn't think the guitars were too loud over the orchestra. The room is designed for an orchestra without any amplification.

The Rape of Lucretia

I think its OK for acoustics. 'Shoebox' concert halls while probably originating from simplicity rather than acoustics, actually work very well. Amsterdam Concertgebouw, and the Musikverein in Vienna, are both regarded very highly.

Where the NCH fails, is when anything is amplified. It really shouldnt be putting on 'shows'. To be fair, that not what it should be used for - it wasnt designed for it, and its size doesnt suit. Its a hall for symphony small orchestras. The stage is a little narrow, but I am never conscious of too much side reflection that you do get in some halls that really spoils things. The choir seats are exactly that - choir seats. As audience seats, of course they fail. But have been in them many times, and generally glad to have been there than not in the hall at all. It is getting a little shabby and tired in recent years, but still tolerable.

Andy From Sligo

I'm kinda getting the vibe that Tuesday's concert was maybe better / louder maybe .. unless I am just getting deafer (that could be it as well)

the second half after the intermission (the wall album) seemed a bit louder than the first i must say. and I heard the orchestra more in the second half.

When I have been to concerts before (even away from the stage) its been so loud you could feel the music pass through you, especially the drums. and then after the concert getting a whistling sound in my head (temporary deafness lol) and absolutely buzzing But i werent feeling that the other night. It was good but just needed to be louder and I think the orchestra needed amplifying - even if they had some dangling down mic's from the lighting rig above them . Its a shame because I really wanted to hear how the wall would sound being played by the RTE orchestra rather than just listening backing tracks and the band itself playing the instruments.

I even felt at some times I was hearing the keyboard player playing some orchestra sounds on the keyboard .. I mean why when there was already an orchestra up there on stage.

More than likely the hall is sufficient enough when there is just a large orchestra on stage playing to warrant it un-amplified - but I think like with the show i went to the other night i would have liked the bands music turned down and the orchestra turned up and the album pre-recorded background music and dialogue toned down and either replicated by the band and or with the orchestra.

But placement (where we were sitting more than likely had a part to play too) it sounds like it was much better sounding actually on the balconies too

It shows you how cultured I am because I thought all orchestras were mic'ed up and amplified but i read that a lot of people prefer the natural sound un-amplified from the orchestra, saying that amplifying an orchestra compresses the sound and makes it sound false and unnatural

Andy From Sligo

https://www.facebook.com/VISIONSOFFLOYDSHOW/photos/a.202511286953198/613039225900400/?type=3&theater

Sheridan81

Muahahaha wrote: »

Andy I was at the same gig the previous night and was also sitting under the balcony at the back of the stalls. Had no problems with sound really and thought it was a fantastic gig to match Pink Floyd music with a full orchestra. Did think the hall itself looks a little bit dated, that bright green paint job reminded me of horrific bathrooms you would see back in the 1980s.

The high horse brigade wrote: »

I was at this gig Tuesday and thought the sound was excellent. We were on the third row of the balcony in the centre so maybe it depends on your seat. I thought they did a good job of mixing the orchestra with amplified instruments and didn't think the guitars were too loud over the orchestra. The room is designed for an orchestra without any amplification.

I was at that gig too; seated in the balcony. I thought it sounded grand.

Also, I'm following both of you.

Strumms

What bugged the shît out of me in the venue is how nice the venue is aesthetically both inside and out but how poxy uncomfortable it is... the seats are uncomfortable both just to sit on and the leg room in particular. I’m 5’11 so no giant and my knees are hitting off the wooden back in front of me... I’ve heard there can be issues with the sound but I don’t recall that on any of my visits..

Andy From Sligo

Sheridan81 wrote: »

I was at that gig too; seated in the balcony. I thought it sounded grand.

Also, I'm following both of you.

thats good. I wonder then if its because we were sitting under the balcony then and it somehow muffled the sound a bit or didnt sound that loud , especially the first half when they were doing DSOTM - that might of been it , that because we were under the balcony at the back of the hall?. - Maybe the balconies had speakers up there or could hear the sound better out of that large vertical speaker hanging down from the lighting rig from the ceiling.

We found ourselves saying in the interval - its good but its not that loud! .. or that clear, and i commented that I really couldnt hear the live orchestra at all in the first half of the show - all I could hear were the band (which were really good) and the backing track of the album .

as I say though it got really better on the second half , louder and clearer, on the wall part ... still no-where near as loud as when I have been at other live concerts though , maybe I'm going deaf LOL

Muahahaha

Strumms wrote: »

What bugged the shît out of me in the venue is how nice the venue is aesthetically both inside and out but how poxy uncomfortable it is... the seats are uncomfortable both just to sit on and the leg room in particular. I’m 5’11 so no giant and my knees are hitting off the wooden back in front of me... I’ve heard there can be issues with the sound but I don’t recall that on any of my visits..

You must have been a bit unlucky Strumms because Im a bit taller that you and the row of seats we were in had ample knee room. I was conscious of that because Id just got off a 3 hour Ryanair flight earlier that afternoon and wasnt looking forward to another two hours with my knees banging the seat in front but it was fine where we were.

Anyway must say fair play to the RTE orchestra for doing these type of gigs. I think the penny finally dropped that there is limited people interested in going to see them perform Mozart for the umpteenth time. iirc it was 2009 that the Trinity Student Orchestra performed Dark Side of the Moon and Daft Punk on campus and in Christchurch cathedral (Hozier was the lead vocal) so it took a while for RTE to twig it but they got there in the end. I know a good few friends who have gone to shows there in the last couple of years so they've really opened up the orchestra to a wider audience other than just classical music.

AulWan

Its scheduled to be closed for refurbishment soon, they reckon it will be closed for two years. So make the most of it.

Muahahaha

It could definitely do with a bit of an upgrade as it looks quite tired and dated in the main auditorium at least. A 2 year renovation sounds like it will cost a pretty penny. I wonder where the two orchestras will base themselves for the 2 years?

AulWan

Muahahaha wrote: »

It could definitely do with a bit of an upgrade as it looks quite tired and dated in the main auditorium at least. A 2 year renovation sounds like it will cost a pretty penny. I wonder where the two orchestras will base themselves for the 2 years?

I don't know about the orchestras but I know the refurb is estimated at €74 million.

wakka12

Andy From Sligo wrote: »

https://www.facebook.com/VISIONSOFFLOYDSHOW/photos/a.202511286953198/613039225900400/?type=3&theater

Thats the interior? Wow, youd think it was a lot more grand and impressive from the facade

The Tetrarch

I did chartered accountancy exams in that hall in December 1973.
The oil crisis was on, no fuel to heat the place. They had two bottle gas heaters. I wore a jumper, jacket, overcoat.
Afterwards walking down the road I started to shake from the cold / exposure.

Andy From Sligo

AulWan wrote: »

Its scheduled to be closed for refurbishment soon, they reckon it will be closed for two years. So make the most of it.

Wow! - i wonder what building they will use temporarily whilst its being done up?

Andy From Sligo

wakka12 wrote: »

Thats the interior? Wow, youd think it was a lot more grand and impressive from the facade

you would TBH .. I did . I was surprised - I think its the balconies that let it down big time , they look like 1960's architecture in a 1865 19th century building they totally look out of place

The Rape of Lucretia

In its defence, that photo looks very foreshortened and doesnt give an accurate impression to those not used to the NCH. Its a perfectly fine hall fundamentally, and but for its recent neglect (yes th upholstery is many seats is shot, and quite uncomfortable if you have one with a spring digging into your thigh) has looked very presentable.
Maybe 'big' music is just not what should be there. When the orchestras are playing there is no lack of loudness, and thats with no amplification.

For me, if something has to be amplified, then you may as well be at home. Go to a live concert to hear live music - not just through someone elses loudspeakers.

As for its redevelopment, while much of the work is for the behind-the-scenes, I fear it will have no, or a detrimental impact on its core effectiveness as a concert hall. A full redecorate and refurb over a couple of months would have sufficed from the audience member point of view.