Union Hall History
Maribor Union Hall, built more than a hundred years ago by Anton Götz, an enthusiastic choral singer, is a distinctive landmark of the city. Its exceptional acoustics have been the reason why Maribor has become a national centre of choral singing: the concert hall hosts the Slovenian national choral competition Naša pesem (Our Song), while for the last 30 years it has also been the venue for the International Choral Competition Gallus – Maribor, culminating in the competition finals for The European Grand Prix for Choral Singing.
The Union Hall building is one of the last prominent landmarks of the historicist (neo-baroque) architecture in Maribor
The present Union Hall is the only remaining building of the former Götz (Thomas Götz from Württemberg) brewery, which was the city’s leading brewery from the 1860s until the First World War. Constantly evolving, the brewery was the most modern brewery in Slovenian Styria.
In 1911, the central part was built – the Götz Hall, today’s Union Hall, which is one of the last prominent landmarks of the historicist (neo-baroque) architecture in Maribor. Union Hall was the city’s largest venue at the turn of the century. In 1926, Götz’s brewery joined the shareholding company of Ljubljana’s Union Brewery, and the Maribor brewery became one of the its plants. It is however only remembered in the name of this sole preserved building of the former brewery – “Union” Hall. After the companies merged the production of the Maribor brewery was first reduced and then suspended. From then on, Union beer was only stored in Maribor. At the same time, a buyer for this large complex in the middle of the city was sought and found: the Narodni dom Loan Company and the Maribor – Matica Association. The latter took over the Union Hall, while the Loan Company took over all the other buildings. Today, the only remaining part of the brewery is the Union Hall; a five-storey commercial building stands on the site of the brewery complex part demolished in 1961. As for the building’s annexe – it houses the RTS Media television facilities.
Founding of the Philharmonic Society, the Music Society and the Glasbena matica Music Society
In 1881, local Maribor German musicians and music lovers founded the Philharmonic Society (orchestra, choirs, music school, etc.). Due to the increasing Germanisation, Slovenians founded the Music Society in 1910, which had its facilities on the third floor of the Union building. In 1918, the music school ceased to function due to a lack of both teaching staff and student candidates. Its legacy was passed on to the Glasbena matica Music Society. After the end of the First World War, the prominent Slovenian general Rudolf Maister founded the “Military Orchestra for Lower Styria”. It gave its first symphonic concert in Maribor on 24 March 1919 in Union (at the time still Götz) Hall. In the same year, Oskar Dev, a composer, choirmaster and court counsellor, founded a choir, which gave its first concert – with the participation of the Military Orchestra – in Union Hall on 21 June 1919. Following the example of the Ljubljana Glasbena matica Music Society, Dev also founded a similar musical society in Maribor in 1919. Until the outbreak of the Second World War, the Glasbena matica Music Society was the central musical gathering point in Maribor. Upon its foundation, the Glasbena matica Music Society took over the inventory of the German Philharmonic Society and settled on the third floor of the Union building. In the same year, a music school was founded.
Union Hall is a protected cultural and historical monument
Due to its prominence and authenticity, Union Hall was designated as a cultural and historical monument by a Decree on the Proclamation of Cultural and Historical Monuments in the Municipality of Maribor in 1992. The distinctive mission associated with Union Hall has been enriching the Slovene cultural life in Maribor for about a hundred years and has played an important role in reacting to the increasing Germanisation of this part of our homeland. On the background of the past function and role of Union Hall, we are well aware of our historical responsibility to provide this venue with a cultural mission of comparable excellence in the present time, which is in some respects likewise groundbreaking.
Union Hall has hosted renowned musicians throughout history
Among the acclaimed ensembles of classical music that have performed at Union Hall are the chamber orchestra of the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, Czech Philharmonic, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Australian Chamber Orchestra, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic, Borodin Quartet, English Chamber Orchestra, Academy of Ancient Music Berlin, Tokyo String Quartet, Leipzig String Quartet and the Vienna Boys Choir. Krzysztof Penderecki, Sergiu Celibidache, Mariss Jansons, Neeme Järvi, Paavo Järvi, Vasily Petrenko, Sir Roger Norrington and musicians such as pianist Sviatoslav Richter and violinist Julian Rachlin have also appeared as conductors, world-class baritone Christian Gerhaher, violinists Hilary Hahn and Sarah Chang, cellists Antonio Janigro, Mischa Maisky and Nicolas Altstaedt, violist Yuri Bashmet, mezzo-soprano Marjana Lipovšek, soprano Bernarda Bobro and many others in other concerts: Ivo Pogorelić, Lester Bowie, Sam Rivers …
