RWCMD opens new facilities

The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, our partner in music education, has officially opened its £22.5 million world-class new facilities, including a theatre and concert hall.

The acoustically excellent recital hall, the Dora Stoutzker Hall, was made possible by Ian Stoutzker, a former violin student, who went in to finance and became chairman of the London Interstate Bank, while holding several prominent positions in music administration, including Chairman of the Philharmonia Orchestra. Stoutzker made a generous donation to the College in memory of his mother Dora, a Welsh music teacher.

Another generous benefactor is remembered in the Richard Burton Theatre, an intimate courtyard theatre. A bronze bust of the deceased great Welsh actor, presented to the College by his late wife Dame Elizabeth Taylor at Buckingham Palace last year, was unveiled by his actor daughter Kate Burton at the opening.

The new facilities also include a new exhibition space, a new frontage and a new foyer, a public space where students, performers, teachers and audiences can gather under one roof and enjoy a fantastic view of the park and beyond.