concert-01

The concert hall was designed by A.L. van Gendt, who was inspired by the Neue Gewandhaus in Leipzig. The construction started in 1883. 2,186 piles twelve to thirteen meters (forty to forty-three feet) in length were sunk into the soil. The hall opened on April 11, 1888, with an inaugural concert in which an orchestra of 120 musicians and a chorus of 500 singers participated, performing works of Wagner, Händel, Bach, and Beethoven.

	The Grote Zaal ("Main Hall") seats 2037, and is 44 meters (144 ft) long, 28 meters (92 ft) wide, and 17 meters (56 ft) high. A smaller, oval-shaped venue, the Kleine Zaal ("Small Hall"), is located behind the main hall. The Kleine Zaal is 20 meters (66 ft) long and 15 meters (50 ft) wide. Its more intimate space is well-suited for chamber music. The Kleine Zaal has 478 seats.

Ace of Diamonds, Van Genechten, Belgium, early 1960's.	Ace of Clubs, Játékkátyagyar és Nyomda, Hungary, 1963