[Photo from moscow.info]

What was once the Palace of Congresses is now Moscow's biggest and most "prestigious" concert hall, as well as playing host to large official functions and events.

The only modern building in the Kremlin was completed in 1961 and became, according to the official Kremlin website, "a model for modern urban Soviet architecture". It's not, in fact, quite as hideous as that description makes it sound, although it's certainly out of place. From the start it was conceived both as a venue for governmental, diplomatic, and Party gatherings, and as a second stage for the Bolshoi. The vast auditorium can seat up to 6,000 people, making it the largest concert hall in Russia. For more information about the building, see the "Kremlin" section of our sightseeing guide.

The repertoire is divided between ballet from the Bolshoi, the sporadically good Kremlin Ballet, and visiting companies (and, with the main stage of the Bolshoi closed till 2008, this may make the venue more interesting to visitors), and concerts by ageing Western rockers - think Bryan Adams, Chris Rea and, er, Procul Harum - and the stars of Russian estrada, a genre with close spiritual ties to Las Vegas and the Eurovision song contest. Examples can be seen filling space on the main Russian TV channels almost every night, saving the curious the considerable expense of buying tickets.

• ADDRESS AND CONTACT INFORMATION

Address: 1, ulitsa Vosdvizhenka, Moscow, 121019, Russia

Telephone: +7 (495) 917-2336, +7 (495) 928-5232

Transport: Aleksandrovsky Sad and Biblioteka Imeni Lenina metro stations

Box Office: Open daily from 12:00 to 19:00 with a break from 15:00 to 16:00

Internet: www.gkd.ru has comprehensive listings and an efficient booking system but, sadly, is all in Russian.