Massey Hall

Toronto’s Yonge St. neighbourhood is home to Massey Hall, one of the city’s most iconic performing arts and live music venues. The auditorium has hosted diverse acts from classical to jazz to blues-rock and folk-country. Massey Hall was a gift to the people of Toronto from industrialist Hart Massey. After recent extensive renovations the building is looking and sounding better than ever and hosts regular live events and entertainment.

Read on for information about the history and cultural relevance of this institution to the city of Toronto.

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INFO

Website: https://masseyhall.mhrth.com/
Email:
Phone number:
Address: 178 Victoria Street
Toronto, ON M5B 1T7
Upcoming Events: see website

History

Opened in 1894, Massey Hall is known for its outstanding acoustics and was the long-time hall of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. An intimate theatre, it was originally designed to seat 3,500 patrons, but after extensive renovations in the 1940s, it now seats up to 2,765. It has an extensive history of concerts by artists of many musical genres which continues today.

At left/above: a photo of Hart Massey, fouder of Massey Hall.

Massey was a Canadian businessman and philanthropist who was a member of the prominent Massey family. He was an industrialist who built the agricultural equipment firm that became Massey Ferguson, now part of AGCO.

Massey Hall was designated a National Historic Site of Canada on June 15, 1981.The hall closed in July 2018 for a two-year-long renovation including a new seven-storey addition and two smaller concert rooms. It re-opened in 2021.

The building is operated by The Corporation of Massey Hall and Roy Thomson Hall, a non-profit charitable organization. It is located at the intersection of Shuter and Victoria Streets, just east of Yonge Street, in downtown Toronto.

Majestic Massey Hall in Toronto

Famous concerts

The hall has held numerous famous concerts. We sourced this list from an article by the Globe and Mail:

Who did they name? Here’s a summary of the list:

  • June 14, 1894 – Opening night (The Messiah)
  • April 23, 1923 – New Symphony Orchestra (later renamed Toronto Symphony Orchestra)
  • March 7, 1946 – Oscar Peterson
  • May 8, 1946 – Glenn Gould
  • May 15, 1953 – Gillespie / Parker
  • Nov. 14, 1965 – Bob Dylan
  • Jan. 17, 1971 – Neil Young
  • Nov. 18, 1992 – Tragically Hip
  • May 19, 2005 – Gordon Lightfoot
  • June 18, 2013 – Joni Mitchell

Incredible performers on that list, Canadian and otherwise!

Gallery

From Rush to Barenaked Ladies to Oscar Peterson, so many classic Canadian music acts have grace the stage at Massey Hall?

Did you see any concerts here? Who was your favourite?

Credits

Feature image and this background image by Toronto photographer Paul Flynn. Info box photo by Alex Laney. Other images public domain and courtesy of Massey Hall.

Article by Team Iconic Toronto. Research via Wikipedia and the Globe and Mail.

Credits

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