First year celebrations for Sage

The Sage Gateshead was officially opened by the Queen

One of the UK's most stunning performance venues is celebrating its first anniversary this weekend.

The £70m Sage Gateshead music centre dominates the banks of the Tyne with its curved roof of glass and steel.

Since opening on 17 December 2004, it has hosted 438 performances and welcomed about 750,000 visitors.

Sage Gateshead director Anthony Sargent said these figures were 12% higher than expected and the feedback from visitors had also been very positive.

He said: "We expected to have 650,000 people through in a normal year and we have had 750,000.

Award-winning venue

"In a way the numbers aren't so important as the quality of the experience that people have."

In its first year, the Sage Gateshead won acclaim for both its programme and management structure and its architecture, including the 2005 Local Authority Building of the Year in the British Construction Industry Awards.

Andrew Dixon, chief executive of NewcastleGateshead Initiative, said: "It is impossible to overestimate the impact of the Sage Gateshead on the cultural landscape of our region.

"It has established itself as a music venue of national and international importance and I cannot now imagine the Newcastle-Gateshead skyline without this fabulous building.

"The Sage Gateshead has also established itself as a key venue for conferences, playing a major role in building an industry which is now worth an estimated £100m to the local economy."