New York

Joan and Sanford I. Weill Recital Hall

Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall has always been an integral part of what makes Carnegie Hall special -- a smaller venue envisioned by Andrew Carnegie as a space for chamber music concerts and recitals by the finest artists of the day. Known fondly as "the intimate side of Carnegie Hall," Weill Recital Hall allows for a close relationship between onstage performer and audience.

Located on the third floor of Carnegie Hall, the Joan and Sanford I. Weill Recital Hall is an intimate auditorium which evokes a Belle Epoque salon and is "rem arkable for the symmetry of its proportions and the beauty of its decorations," according to a review from 1891, when the hall was known as the Chamber Music Hall. In 1986, the Chamber Music Hall was renamed in recognition of the generosity of the Chairman of the Board of Carnegie Hall, Sanford I. Weill, and his wife, Joan.

As versatile and functional as it is elegant, the Recital Hall has served as the site for such diverse events as Will Rogers' live radio broadcasts in the 1930s, as a lecture hall for music students, and as a celebrated debut hall in which artists like Yo-Yo Ma have launched successful concert careers.

Weill Recital Hall and its private 57th Street entrance were restored in 1986. In 1991, the theater was complemented with the addition of expanded backstage and dressing-room space, freight elevator service, and the Klaus Jacobs Room.