Happy 21st birthday to Birmingham Symphony Hall

It is 21 years since Birmingham's Symphony Hall opened its doors for the first time.

looks at the history of the state-of-the-art building.

Standing tall in the centre of Britain's second city, for the past 21 years the Symphony Hall has acted as a beacon for the biggest and best names in national and international music.

Click on the image to the right for our Birmingham Symphony Hall photo gallery

The music of pop icons such as Gary Barlow, Morrissey, Ringo Star, and East 17 has rung out through the hall alongside classical legends such as Ludovico Einaudi and the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

Top comedians such as Lee Evans, Jimmy Carr, and Tim Minchin have also commandeered the stage as part of an ever-eclectic line-up.

The man at the helm, director of both Town Hall and Symphony Hall Andrew Jowett, took some time from his busy schedule to chat with the Express & Star about the history behind the iconic venue.

"It's one of the most significant buildings ever to be built in Birmingham," he says. "It was one of the major leaders in the regeneration of the city centre back in the 80s."

Mr Jowett, aged 61, of Pershore, Worcestershire, joined the Symphony Hall crew in November 1988, nearly three years before it opened to the public.

He spent the next few months bringing together a skilled behind-the-scenes team and making sure the best names in the business knew what the hall had to offer.

It opened on April 15, 1991, welcoming 4,000 people to two concerts by the resident City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Simon Rattle.

The successful first night was followed by the weekend-long British Gas Flame of Youth Festival, with Prince Edward gracing the event.

"People sometimes say to me is there anything you would change if you could go back and build it again. But I honestly don't think I would – the building fundamentally worked from the word go. The minute we heard the first notes in the hall we knew it worked," Mr Jowett says.

"The biggest problem for most concert halls is that classical, orchestral music sounds fantastic, but amplified music just doesn't work. But we have the facility to change the reverberation and acoustics of the room which makes it work.

"We can host Billy Connolly one night and Die Meistersingers the next. Liza Minnelli and Bruce Springsteen have played here, we have the Christmas carol concerts, and we have Lord of the Dance coming up in March.

"We can have a whole range of things."

One of his main points of pride, he said, was that the building is still as good as new.

This has been achieved by making much of the interior concrete and granite, with the wooden-look panels, actually a timber veneer burned onto concrete, to help both with acoustics and longevity.

All replacement works, such as new seating, tends to be done during the quiet summer months to avoid having to close the venue.

"Around 10 million bums have sat on those seats and the wooden floors have seen a lot of stiletto heels, as well as thousands of people passing through the halls, so we have to have a regime in place," he says.

"You have got to be aware of these things and build it into your annual budget as it is very difficult to recover once it gets to a certain point of disrepair."

Since the doors first opened to the public it has hosted a number of famous faces off the stage as well as on.

When the G8 conference came to the city in 1998, Tony Blair, Bill Clinton and Jacques Chirac spent one evening at a concert at the hall.

Smaller concerts and lesser-known names are not overlooked, either.

Hundreds of people flood into the foyer bar for the free music events held there, including the weekly Rush Hour Blues event on a Friday night, and the monthly Sax in the City jazz concert.

Wolverhampton star Beverley Knight has performed there five times over the past six years.

"It's like the Albert Hall in terms of prestige, but has better acoustics," she says. "As an artist, when you're standing on that stage looking out at the audience it really feels like something special."

Among the regulars at the venue are Welsh male voice choir Only Men Aloud.

Member Tim Rhys Evans says: "We love the Symphony Hall. It is richly deserving of its reputation as one of the finest concert halls in the country and to perform there is a joy and a privilege.

"To think of the 'greats' who've stood on that stage before you is always humbling – and she's still looking good after 21 years too."

And the city's own Joan Armatrading said she always ensures the venue is part of her tours.

"It is a must for me to know that on my tours around the world, Birmingham Symphony Hall is at the top of the list," she said.

"Having grown up in Birmingham, I feel really proud that this city has one of the finest concert halls in the UK.

"It's always a highlight to play to the audiences in this wonderful theatre. Happy 21st Symphony Hall."

In 2007, after leaving the NEC Group brand, the Symphony Hall joined forces with the Town Hall to become THSH.

But it is now facing one of its biggest challenges ever as, amid proposed budget cuts of £212million, Birmingham City Council last year cut funding to the THSH brand by 23 per cent – around £1 million.

So far, they have managed to come in on target without making any job cuts – but Mr Jowett warned if box office numbers start to fall, that is when they will face real trouble as ticket sales make up 80 per cent of the halls' income.

"We have never been over-staffed anyway, and have had a pretty efficient staff model," he said.

"The artistic programme is fundamental, and you need to have the people to deliver that.

"But box office sales are the one thing you can't plan for. Thankfully, touch wood, the business still seems to be there at the moment.

"I think as long as we have the right shows, and continue to provide a good mix, people will still come."

The next few months promise to be jam-packed full of celebratory events which aim to bring in all varieties of music fans during the Anniversary Festival.

Billy Connolly, Elvis Costello, John Malcovic and – of course – the CBSO will all take to the stage in a series of events to mark the occasion.

Mr Jowett is now writing a book about the history of the hall, which he hopes to get done by June 12 in time for the anniversary of the Queen's official plaque unveiling.

"It has been brilliant to do this job. It's an absolute privilege – it is the home of the world's greatest music," he said.

"It's the greatest concert hall that has been built in the 21st century, and it's right here in Birmingham. That's quite something."