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The new stage where Art Garfunkel performed |
Neighbours relish sounds of silence during concerts
Noise-cut measures praised as Garfunkel opens Kenwood season
A ROUSING performance by singer Art Garfunkel kicked off the 55th – and possibly last – annual season of summer concerts at Kenwood House in Hampstead on Saturday.
More than 6,000 visitors packed the lawns of the historic house to hear the night’s star – one half of legendary duo Simon and Garfunkel – belt out hit songs Bright Eyes and Bridge over Troubled Waters. But as an audience which included TV stars Richard Madeley, Judy Finnigan, Esther Rantzen and Anneka Rice tucked into their hampers, few seemed aware that the fate of the lucrative concerts hangs in the balance.
In April, Town Hall licensing chiefs forced IMG, which organises the season for Kenwood guardian English Heritage, to axe two concerts from the programme after residents’ complaints about excessive noise levels. IMG warned that this would make the concert season “financially unviable”.
One of those who complained, Harley Atkinson, of Fitzroy Park, Highgate, was happy with Saturday’s concert, the first under new noise-busting measures. He said: “It was really quite quiet. I could certainly hear it in the garden but it was not as intrusive as it has been in the past.
“If they could do it like that every time then there would not be a problem.”
There was support for the concerts from those in the audience, including Esther Rantzen, who lives in South End Green, Hampstead.
She said: “I think the concerts are a lovely piece of glitzy and public entertainment. I haven’t been before but I used to come out onto my flat roof and enjoy them vicariously. It saddens me that anyone should complain about anyone else’s enjoyment.”
GMTV presenter Penny Smith, a former Camden resident, added: “It’s a real shame there have been problems. I’m a big fan of the concerts. I live in Notting Hill and it would be a bit like complaining about the carnival.”
While IMG has refused to comment further on the future of the season, its bosses were relieved to have finally got the concerts under way on Saturday. They have spent £200,000 on a package of measures, including a floating stage, to reduce noise.
Delighted IMG boss Stephen Flintwood said: “The first concert in the summer series at Kenwood was a great success. The new floating stage, being much closer to the audience than in the past, allows for much improved intimacy between artist and audience.
“Thanks to the new sound system installed by English Heritage and IMG this year, sound levels from the concert in surrounding streets were well within the agreed levels and there were no noise complaints.”
The council’s decision to axe the two concerts was upheld by a licensing court earlier this month. |
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