Thanks to Scott Morrison for running this piece.  Wigmore Hall is my
favorite place in London; in a decade of visits to London I've heard over
30 performances there -- mostly piano and string quartet.  I now makea
point of staying at hotels within walking distance of the Hall.  Everything
Michael White says about the acoustics, the quality of the programming, and
the sophistication of the audience are true.  Though I see many familiar
faces in the audience, I hadn't realized there was a regular group of
"every-niters", but I guess I shouldn't have been surprised.  If I lived in
London in comfortable circumstances, I would likely become one myself.  One
thing the article doesn't mention is that Wigmore tickets are a real
bargain.  The "cheap seats" in the rear, acoustically as good as anywhere
in the hall, are only 7-10 pounds save for the most celebrated artists.

Here in San Francisco we are fortunate to have a fine chamber/recital
series, San Francisco Performances (and the venue, Herbst Hall, is
sonically quite good); but their entire season is about equivalent to
what you can hear in any one month at Wigmore.  It is a British national
treasure, and any music lover visiting London ought to make a pilgrimage.
By the way, they at last have a website:  www.wigmore-hall.org.uk.

Art Scott
Livermore, Cal.