The Blue Hall ( sv, Blå hallen) is the main hall of the

Stockholm City Hall Stockholm City Hall ( sv, Stockholms stadshus, ''Stadshuset'' locally) is the seat of Stockholm Municipality in Stockholm, Sweden. It stands on the eastern tip of Kungsholmen island, next to Riddarfjärden's northern shore and facing the isla ...

best known as the banquet hall for the annual

Nobel Banquet The Nobel Banquet ( sv, Nobelfesten) is an annual banquet held on 10 December in the Blue Hall of Stockholm City Hall, after the Nobel Prize ceremony. At the banquet, for which a formal dress code exists, a multi-course dinner is served and en ...

, and also used for state visits, student balls, jubilees and other large events.

Description

The Hall is long, wide and high and has a floor space of . It contains a monumental staircase, balcony, and

loggia In architecture, a loggia ( , usually , ) is a covered exterior gallery or corridor, usually on an upper level, but sometimes on the ground level of a building. The outer wall is open to the elements, usually supported by a series of columns ...

. A bust of the architect of the hall, Ragnar Östberg, is placed on the hall's rooftop terrace. The Blue Hall has brick walls which are not plastered. The hall was originally supposed to have been plastered and painted blue, a colour scheme that would have resembled the water of the bay. But Östberg changed his mind during the construction of the hall after he saw the red brick. Though Östberg abandoned his blue design in favour of the unfinished red brick, the name "Blue Hall" was already in general use and stuck.

Pipe organ

The Blue Hall contains a

pipe organ The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air (called ''wind'') through the organ pipes selected from a keyboard. Because each pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ''rank ...

known as the Stadshusorgeln (Town Hall pipe organ). The organ was dedicated in 1925. It has around 10,000 pipes and is Scandinavia's 2nd largest musical instrument. Towards the end of the 1960s, the organ was rebuilt and the instrument underwent maintenance at various times afterwards, but by 2007 it was decided that the instrument needed a major overhaul and from 2007 to 2008 the pipe organ was completely renovated by the firm

Harrison & Harrison Harrison & Harrison Ltd is a British company that makes and restores pipe organs, based in Durham, England, Durham and established in Rochdale in 1861. It is well known for its work on instruments such as King's College, Cambridge, Westminster ...

in England.

Use

The Hall is the site of the annual

, held every December 10. This banquet is "the most sought-after social invitation in Sweden", attended by the

Swedish Royal Family The Swedish royal family ( sv, Svenska kungafamiljen) since 1818 has consisted of members of the Swedish Royal House of Bernadotte, closely related to the King of Sweden. Today those who are recognized by the government are entitled to royal tit ...

, government ministers, parliamentarians, and over 1200 invited guests. Following the banquet, guests go to the

Golden Hall The Golden Hall (''Jindian'' or ''Jinding''), situated at the top of Tianzhu Peak (1612m), is one of the most distinctive landmarks in Wudangshan. It was built in 1416 during the Ming dynasty. According to local histories, the hall was forged ...

, in the same complex, for dancing. The

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfre ...

s are not handed out in the Blue Hall, but are given out earlier at the Stockholm Concert Hall at Hötorget. On his day each year the S:t Eriksmedaljen ( St. Eriks Medal) is handed out to awardees at the Blue Hall. The Blue Hall is also used for state visits, student balls, jubilees, and other large events.

References

Notes

Sources

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External links

360 degree panorama of Blå Hallen360 degree panorama of Blå Hallen nr.2
{{coord, 59.32745, 18.05417, format=dms, type:landmark_region:SE, display=title Culture in Stockholm Individual rooms