The Sage Gateshead is a centre for musical education and performance,
located in Gateshead on the south
bank of the River Tyne, in the
north-east of England. It was opened
in 2004.
The venue is part of the Gateshead Quays development, which also includes the BALTIC Centre for Contemporary
Art and the Gateshead Millennium Bridge.
The centre occupies a "curvy glass and
stainless steel"
building designed by Lord Foster and Mott MacDonald, with
spectacular views of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, the Tyne Bridge, High Level Bridge
and the Gateshead Millennium Bridge. The
planning and construction process that began in 1994 cost over £70 million,
which was raised primarily through National Lottery grants. The centre has a
range of patrons, notably The Sage Group plc (by whom the centre was
named; the originally proposed title was 'Music Centre Gateshead') who
contributed to the building's construction and sponsored its opening
weekend.
The venue opened over the weekend 17th-19th December 2004. Rather than open
in traditional fashion with a gala concert, The Sage Gateshead offered free
admission to an opening weekend showcasing a variety of performers in diverse
styles, in keeping with its philosophy that no genre of music should be excluded
from a venue intended as a public facility.
The Sage Gateshead is also available as a conference venue, and it hosted the
Labour
Party's Spring conference in February 2005.
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