The transformation of the 'Squero' of San Giorgio Maggiore into a modern musical auditorium
The Squero (former workshop for the repair of vessels) of the Island of San Giorgio Maggiore has been transformed into a modern and impressive auditorium. During the presentation to the press, on 9 March 2016, Pasquale Gagliardi stated: "To date, the Foundation did not have a space designed specifically for music. As a rule, we used the Tapestry Room, the Palladian refectory and the Teatro verde for concerts, the latter unusable for the last two years owing to the corroded areas and awaiting a restoration that will cost 600 -700 thousand euros. Now, with the restructuring of this squero and its amazing acoustics, we were able to fill a gap with an auditorium of great beauty and with results repay all the effort." The concert hall of the Giorgio Cini Foundation will open to the public at 5pm on 23 April, with the first of six concerts of the Quartetto di Venezia. This ensemble's concerts run up until 19 November playing the full string quartets of Ludwig van Beethoven.