Symphony Hall

Symphony Hall

Mosque Theater

Salaam Temple

The Newark Symphony Hall was designed in an eclectic style, drawing inspiration from ancient Greece, Egypt, and Rome. The Neo-classical street façade presents a simplified plane with Ionic columns arranged in the hexastyle in antis configuration. Rectilinearity is emphasized further by the flat roof, empty frieze, and dentiled cornice. Ornamentation has been limited to a festoon of garlands in shallow relief running along the top of the building. Its seating capacity of 3,500 puts the Symphony Hall ahead of New York City’s Carnegie Hall, and Lincoln Center’s Metropolitan Opera House. This building is historically significant not only for its legacy as an artifact of the Roaring Twenties but also for the list of world-renowned performers, composers, and conductors that it has hosted through the years.

1925

extant

Since its inception in 1925, the hall has undergone some changes, yet without losing its main features. The 1965 renovations included structural upgrades, HVAC installations, and stage and pit replacements. The most obvious alteration on the exterior was the introduction of a glass and metal marquee.

Books

Gordon, Mark W., and Anthony Schuman, editors. Newark Landmark Treasures: A Guide to the Landmark Buildings, Parks, Public Art & Historic Districts in New Jersey’s Metropolis. Newark Preservation and Landmarks Committee, 2016, p. 12.

Kidney, Walter C. The Architecture of Choice: Eclecticism in America, 1880-1930. New York: G. Braziller, 1974, pp. 167-171.

Read, Philip M. Movie Houses of Greater Newark. Charleston, S.C.: Arcadia Publishing, 2013, p. 29-30.

Articles

"Assessing Symphony Hall's role." Star-Ledger, The (Newark, NJ) 15 May 2009: 032. NewsBank. Web. 20 July 2016.

Joan, Whitlow. "Past and future come together at Symphony Hall." Star-Ledger, The (Newark, NJ) 29 May 2009: 013. NewsBank. Web. 20 July 2016.

 “Will begin plans for Salaam Tower.” Newark Evening News, 5 October 1925, p. 8.

Files

National Register of Historic Places, Symphony Hall, Newark, Essex County, New Jersey, National Register #77000867 

Neoclassical