Four days of music and performance is planned for Barrow next month, thanks to a unique partnership in the town.
Barrow Music, a creative collaboration between The Forum, South Lakes Rock School and local organisations including Barrow Underground Music Society, BarrowFull and Barrow Bid, has secured £28,000 from Arts Council England to stage BarrowMusic#2.
Now in its second year, the event, from Thursday September 29 to Sunday October, will see an eclectic programme of live music and performance across the town alongside a music industry/education conference to inspire young people, raise aspirations and provide opportunities to learn about career and leisure pathways into the creative music industry.
A primary school singing event, Sing22, at The Forum on September 29 will launch BarrowMusic#2. Local primary school choirs will be performing their own song sets to each other, culminating in an en masse performance of this year’s Barrow Music Anthem with a live band backing from South Lakes Rock School.
Later that evening LA14 LIVE, supported by Barrow BID, will see audiences guided on a musical tour around four town centre venues each featuring a different band with Voodoo Radio and Indigo Youth confirmed. BBC Introducing in Cumbria will be broadcasting live from The Forum that same evening before hosting an artists panel at the daytime schools conference on September 30.
The theme for this year’s conference for local young people is Aspire to Inspire: Pathways and Progression in Music. Students will have the chance to discuss career and leisure options in music with local businesses, educators and organisations as well as take part in a variety of workshops and hands on musical experiences provided by Full of Noises, Black Shed Drums and Harps North West, among others.
Friday will also see Manchester-based music conferences Un-Convention curating a Q&A panel at a networking event bringing together musicians and artists (age 16-plus) to meet and share ideas.
A tea dance for lovers of vintage music and dancing will take place in Barrow Market Hall on Friday afternoon and in the evening Graffiti Classics make a welcome return to Barrow following their highly successful Playground Proms, bursting into Barrow Town Hall for a family show with their all-singing, all-dancing string quartet.
Carlisle-based Hardwicke Circus, who are emerging as one of the most exciting bands in the UK, make an appearance at Cloud 9 with a special headliner to be announced at The Forum.
Barrow town centre will be buzzing on October 1 with a host of performances in unexpected places, a busking zone in Portland Walk and live music with TNT Records at The Book Corner. Barrowfull will be returning to The Forum with a sell-out Little Fish Big Fish Baby Rave, a music and dance party for the post-rave generation of parents – and their kids!
A silent disco in The Mall leads into a Soul Takeover at The Forum on Saturday evening with top soul DJs from the North West spinning the best Motown and Soul hits on vinyl. October 2 will focus on Barrow’s more mature residents. Silver Sunday activities will include music performances across the day and a chance for community singing with South Lakes Rock Choir.
Across the whole weekend, Barrow town centre streets plus pop-up and established venues including Barrow Underground Music Society, Tailors, The Derby, Odd Frog and The Labour Club will be showcasing local and out of town artists as part of BarrowMusic#2 with more music and workshops still to be confirmed.
