One of Scotland's national orchestras is to build a new home in the centre of Edinburgh.
The charitable trust Impact Scotland and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra (SCO) have developed a proposal to create a "new world-class arts centre" behind the historic Royal Bank of Scotland branch in St Andrew Square.
The new concert hall, the first new auditorium for Edinburgh in many years, will also be a major new Festival venue.
The new facility, a new building on spare land owned by the RBS, will include a 1000 seater auditorium, as well as studio space for rehearsal, rectial and recording.
The new building will be immediately behind Dundas House at 36 St Andrew Square, Edinburgh and could cost up to £45m.
The Royal Bank of Scotland branch will continue to operate as a stand-alone branch.
The SCO says the auditorium will meet "the long-recognised need for a purpose-built, mid-sized performance venue in Edinburgh, combining excellent acoustics with access for all forms of popular music, jazz, folk, chamber and other small classical music groups as well as solo and song recitals and small dance ensembles."
The proposed new building will provide a performance, rehearsal and recording home for the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, and will be their first purpose-built HQ, as they have performed for many years in the Queen's Hall.
It will also be used by the Edinburgh International Festival (EIF) as one of its principal, all-day venues for festival performances.
Impact Scotland will be responsible for oversight of constructing the new building and will manage and operate the complex.
The Dunard Fund, a long-term supporter of the arts in Scotland has committed a substantial gift towards its cost.
Further individual gifts have already been pledged and further fundraising will be undertaken as part of the project.
Initial discussions with the City of Edinburgh Council and the Scottish Government on public sector funding are ongoing.
Sir Ewan Brown, who has been chairing the Impact Scotland Project Board said: "I see this is a global opportunity for a global city, combining the best of the old and the new to establish a venue that will attract performers, audiences and visitors from around the world."
Malcolm Buchanan, chair of the RBS, said: "We have been a part of the fabric of Scottish life for nearly 300 years and this latest venture is a fantastic opportunity for the Royal Bank of Scotland to play a major role in supporting the arts and education in Scotland."
Colin Buchan, chairman of the SCO said: "With this wonderful support from the SCO’s long-term supporter, Dunard Fund, this project provides a fantastic opportunity for the SCO to provide an open, welcoming and unforgettable audience experience in a much-needed mid-sized performance venue with stunning acoustics in the heart of Edinburgh.
"Not only will it provide our internationally renowned orchestra with a splendid new home, it will also enable the SCO to reach out in ways that have not been possible in the past."
Fergus Linehan, the director of EIF, said “It is very important to the future development of the Edinburgh International Festival that all our venues are of the best international quality.
"We would adopt the new complex not just for our much loved morning concerts but as one of our principal, all-day performance venues. It would also deliver creative learning and participatory opportunities, releasing individual potential and enabling local residents, as well as visitors, to share in the city's remarkable artistic achievements."
A spokesperson for Dunard Fund said: "Edinburgh has long awaited an iconic, acoustically superb mid-sized performance hall and we are proud to participate in this exciting project. The new venue would not only benefit the city’s Festivals and the SCO, but would also be a magnet for international touring groups representing all aspects of the performing arts.”
Nigel Griffiths, Chair of The Queen's Hall, where the SCO has been based for the last 37 years, said: "We welcome the Scottish Chamber Orchestra's plans for a new concert hall for Edinburgh which will help to improve the cultural infrastructure of the city and we wish them well in realising their plans.
"The Queen's Hall is proud to have been the home of the SCO for the past 37 years. We have just signed an agreement to host the orchestra for performances and rehearsals for another 5 years which will ensure that there is no disruption in the superb concerts we will continue to provide together for dedicated classical music fans, including the 12 concerts already penned in the diary next year.
"Now that the news of a proposed new concert hall has been made public it helps us to plan for the future of our own building.
"The Queen's Hall is about to embark on a major fundraising exercise to refurbish and expand our facilities to celebrate our 40th anniversary in 2019, and to commemorate this historic building's 200th anniversary in 2023."
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