Steve Schwartz writes

>Against all odds, I once (40 years ago) performed (with about 60 others)
>in the Academy hall.  To me, it was one of the greatest halls I've ever been
>in, with a bright, glorious, ringing sound that made us much better than we
>were.  Has anything happened in the meantime?

Acoustics are good for musicians on stage as they are, effectively,
sitting in a small theater (the shell) by themselves.  For the audience,
the experience is very different.  The Academy is an opera house, no an
orchestra hall.

To see the new hall, go to www.rpac.org.  There's a construction web cam
at http://www.perksreutter.com/cams/rpac/hugesize.jpg The new hall will
open 12/15.

Robin Mitchell-Boyask
Temple University
Philadelphia PA 19122