I agree with Sakari Oramo that his Birmingham Symphony Hall is the standard to aim for. We are so lucky outside London to have such fine halls like the Bridgwater in Manchester, Lighthouse in Poole, the improved Liverpool Philharmonic and even Northampton has a very presentable Derngate.

Finlandia Hall wasn't exactly turned into a conference centre this year, it was designed as one in the first place, and has always hosted at least as many conferences as it has concerts. The musicians were complaining about too many conferences being booked right from the opening day of the hall in 1971. In 1973, two years after completion, Finlandia Hall was the stage for what was aimed as president Kekkonen's crowning achievement, the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE). The final act was signed by 35 countries from both sides of the iron curtain and seen as a major achievement (at least for a moment) in relations between the west and the communist bloc. The acoustics of Finlandia Hall were always a compromise, and Aalto was apparently quite aware of this already in the design stages, as he did go to concerts himself. Acoustically poor fan-shaped halls were in vogue at the time, and they were a natural fit for Aalto's architectural language and the needs of a conference auditorium. I certainly wouldn't call Finlandia Hall spartan with its Aalto-designed bent wood decorations, marble floors and whatnot. The word might better suit the new Music Centre, or at least its exteriors. The photo in the article shows Sibelius Academy's entrance in the 'rear' of the building, not the 'front' sides with the main entrances for the audience. More pictures here: http://musiikkitalo.kuvat.fi/kuvat/