England's second-oldest stage has fallen silent after the owners were told to keep the noise down or face hefty fines.

Now music promoters fear a crackdown is putting Rochester's thriving gig scene under threat.

The Royal Function Rooms, which has the historic stage at Star Hill, has cancelled all amplified gigs indefinitely after it was hit with a noise abatement order for the first time in a decade.

At least two other pubs have been served identical orders in the past few weeks by Medway Council, which is facing a tough balancing act to keep music fans and those who live in and around the town centre happy.

The orders instruct venues not to play "live and loud amplified music" to avoid a £20,000 fine or having amps confiscated.

But music promoters say just one angry neighbour can hold an entire venue to ransom as the orders do not say how loud is too loud.

Andrew Barnes, 52, who runs the historic Star Hill venue with his wife Mary, 47, said: "The theme of the Olympics was this country’s musical contribution to the world. Most of these people started playing in small venues like this one."

With two stages and two recording studios, the Royal Function Rooms are a hub of Medway's live scene, but it shares a wall with a home previously used as offices.

Mrs Barnes said: "The council can't tell us what decibel reading we should have – it's all subjective – so we've had to cancel all amplified gigs for two months."

Alternative stars The Cribs and John Cooper Clarke have graced the venue, which was due to host the Homespun and ME1 music festivals this summer.

It will still hold private functions and acoustic gigs but Andrew and Mary, who have five children, fear for their long-term future.

“This pub’s been here for hundreds of years and they built the houses round it”

In Rochester High Street, the Singapora Lounge and Nag's Head have both been served with noise abatement orders. Both venues say it is due to a dispute with one resident.

The Singapora Lounge recently cut short an acoustic gig after two songs. Director Monish Shome said: "It feels like we’re being held to ransom. We have one neighbour who complains and it feels like he’s holding all the cards."

Nag's Head landlady Freddie Creek said: "This pub's been here for hundreds of years and they built the houses round it."

Her husband David said: "If the council wants the Latin Quarter image with artists' studios you have to have places for bands."

Heather Mason, who runs the Man of Kent pub in John Street, said she never has problems. "It's like having a kid’s party in your house every day," she said. "You don't want the kids jumping on your chairs and squirting shampoo over the curtains."

But Jolly Knight boss Ryan Denny, who has had a warning letter, said: "There's always going to be noise in the high street."

Ed Jennings, of promoter TEA Concerts, has met with Medway Council to discuss the problem.

He said: "There's this general sense of paranoia going on and we don't think that's massively helpful. It does seem enforcement is being very over-zealous."

A council spokesman claimed the authority supports the live scene by running festivals and concerts, and recently ran a Noise Action Week to advise venues how to live alongside neighbours.

He said there are more complaints in summer because of open doors and windows. After the first complaint, venues received a warning letter and callers are given an out-of-hours number to summon council officers late at night to assess the problem from inside their home.

He added: "It is worth noting that location is always taken into mind and the noise must be so loud that it seriously affects the person. It is not feasible to expect to live in an urban area and expect to hear no noise.

"We work with venues who have noise abatement orders to advise on the measures they can take to continue playing live music, while not upsetting nearby residents, and are happy to meet with any who have been served one."