'The Sound that Burned: The Queen's Hall 70th Anniversary'. Produced by Falling Tree for BBC Radio 3, Alan Hall, producer, broadcast 30 April 2011 and 26 May 2012

Andrew Green tells the story of one of Europe's great concert halls, the Queen's Hall, located at the top of Regent Street. Opened in November 1893, it became famed for its acoustic qualities and the many great performers appearing there. But on the night of 10 May 1941, during the worst night of the Blitz, the building was destroyed by a German incendiary bomb.

Green chronicles the hall's struggle for financial stability, its relationship with visiting and homegrown orchestras and conductors, its design and acoustic qualities and its place in concert-goers' affections. Tracing the events of that terrible night, he reveals how the water supply ran dry and Queen's Hall burned.

The programme includes contributions from the broadcasters John Amis and Richard Baker, the social historian Leanne Langley, the Arup acoustician Rob Harris and QH 'guide' Robert Threlfall, besides wonderful archive recordings of many QH witnesses and fine musicians.

'a pleasure to hear so many fine examples of artistry'

A listener

Falling Tree Productions has uploaded this broadcast on its SoundCloud pages here.