Explore the Venue

Where music magic and architectural artistry meet.

Melbourne Recital Centre comprises two striking performance spaces, carefully crafted to bring musicians and music-lovers together.

Elisabeth Murdoch Hall 

Elisabeth Murdoch Hall is lined with exquisite plywood panels of Australian plantation Hoop Pine timber, designed to resemble the back of a beautiful instrument and provide greater acoustic intimacy across the 1000-seat auditorium. The platform acoustics enrich the strength, clarity and blending of instruments as well as the communication between ensemble players on stage.

Elisabeth Murdoch Hall is encased in 250mm of concrete and is elevated by 38 large steel spring bearing units (weighing 550 tonnes) to reduce low frequency noise and ensure a superb acoustic environment.

Originally designed for the enjoyment of classical and orchestral music, Elisabeth Murdoch Hall has evolved into the perfect space to experience all types of live music. 

Named after the Centre’s Founding Patron Dame Elisabeth Murdoch AC DBE, the Hall truly is ‘…a living space for making, sharing and enjoying great music.’

Click here to take a 360-degree virtual tour of Elisabeth Murdoch Hall developed by Arup or get a close up view in the video below.

Primrose Potter Salon

The organic acoustics of Elisabeth Murdoch Hall extend to the Primrose Potter Salon, a uniquely intimate 140-seat performance and event space. 

Comprising a series of diffusing timber panels with tessellated plywood faces which tip in and out to form a modulated wall and ceiling, the Primrose Potter Salon can be set up in multiple formations including concert-mode, cabaret-mode with tables and chairs and in the round.

Australian pianist/composer Percy Grainger believed ‘a melody is as free to roam through tonal space as a painter is free to draw and paint free lines.’ To illustrate this, Grainger’s 1937 graphic score, Free Music No.2 is inscribed across the timber panels, inspiring players and audiences alike.

Watch Melbourne band Folk Bitch Trio's backstage video recorded in the Primrose Potter Salon below.

The Peter & Ruth McMullin Beacon

Designed to offer an experience unlike our other two venues, The Peter & Ruth McMullin Beacon is defined by floor-to-ceiling views of the Melbourne skyline.

Guests are welcomed by First Nations artwork lining the walls, a visual representation of the work Look Above. Composed especially for The Beacon, the piece is centred around Woiwurrung words by Aunty Joy Murphy Wandin AO and composed by Dr Lou Bennett AM, with lead vocals by Aunty Joy's granddaughter Chenile Chandler, and Lou on backing vocals. ARM Architecture translated the composition into the artwork using a spectrogram, the software that visualises how sound moves through space.

Designed for flexibility, The Beacon can be configured to suit a wide range of events, from cabaret-style seating and cocktail receptions to theatre style presentations and performances. Complete with a fully equipped commercial kitchen and bar, the venue caters for everything from corporate meetings, concerts, cocktails events, lunches and private celebrations. With its adaptable layout and premium facilities, The Beacon is the ultimate setting for both performance and private events

Named in honour of philanthropists Peter McMullin AM and Ruth McMullin, whose generous $1 million gift transformed a once-empty storage space into a vibrant inner-city venue.