The $1m funding boost for Edinburgh concert hall Dunard Centre from Andrew Carnegie's fortune

The Dunard Centre - a new concert hall being built in Edinburgh - is due to open in 2029.

A $1 million donation from the fortune of Scottish industrialist Andrew Carnegie has been given to a new concert hall being built in Edinburgh city centre.

The philanthropic foundation Carnegie Corporation of New York has made a $1m (£747,000) grant towards the “design and programming” of the Dunard Centre, which is being built on the recently cleared site behind the historic RBS branch building on St Andrew Square.

The Dunard Centre will be a 1,000-seat concert hall complete with a multi-purpose space, café and bar connected to the a-listed Dundas House, in Edinburgh's New Town | David Chipperfield Architects, Reiach and Hall Architects

This comes as a new report projects the venue will generate £170m in gross value added (GVA) in the first 20 years, based on an estimated 200,000 visitors a year. The Dunard Centre is also projected to boost tourism spending by £8.6m each year, supporting nearly 300 jobs.

Work is due to start this summer on what will be the first major new city centre concert venue for Edinburgh in more than a century when the venue opens in 2029.

The Carnegie foundation is led by Dame Louise Richardson, former principal and vice-chancellor of the University of St Andrews. The organisation was established by the Scottish industrialist Carnegie in 1911, to manage the bulk of his philanthropic giving.

When it opens, the centre will provide a permanent home for the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and a new venue for the Edinburgh International Festival.

The Dunard Centre construction site | TSPL

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Jo Buckley, chief executive of the Dunard Centre, said: “We are hugely grateful for this grant, which recognises both the global significance of the Dunard Centre and the role it will play in enriching the lives of local people, by giving them greater access to the arts. The money will help us develop and advance our engagement strategy, which is a vital element of our mission to create a ‘Hall for All’ here in Edinburgh.”

The centre’s social engagement plan sets out an ambition to become a UK cultural sector leader in increasing access to the arts. Some 17,000 people are expected to benefit from a wide-ranging community engagement programme each year, with new opportunities created for skills development leading to improved workplace pathways.

Ms Buckley said: “With a focus on supporting civic participation and socioeconomic mobility, we intend to build trusted relationships, design thoughtful creative engagement programmes, and establish the team that will bring this work to life when we open our doors in 2029.”

She added: “We look forward to the opportunity of exploring and sharing the parallels between the transformational philanthropy of Andrew Carnegie – and the mark this left upon the world – and the various ways civic society benefits from the provision of outstanding performance and life-long engagement with music.”

The centre is named after the Dunard Fund, an arts charity created by philanthropist Carol Colburn Grigor. The charity is providing much of the private funding for the venue, which is also backed by £25 million from the UK and Scottish governments, and the city council.

Jo Buckley, is chief executive of IMPACT Scotland, the charity overseeing the creation of the Dunard Centre concert hall in Edinburgh city centre. Picture: Sally Jubb

The Dunard Centre will also be the first UK venue designed by Nagata Acoustics, the world’s foremost acoustic experts, and the first concert hall anywhere in the world from the globally renowned David Chipperfield Architects.