Ten cities from across the country have been short-listed at by the Arts Council’s Take it away scheme, which aims to make musicianship accessible and affordable for all. Celebrity ambassadors for each city, including Sting, Jamelia, Richard Hawley and Engelbert Humperdinck, lead the debate for the Most Musical City until voting closes on May 30, 2008.
The ten cities competing to win are Birmingham, Brighton, Bristol, Colchester, Leicester, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Newcastle, and Sheffield.
“Music is at the centre of our culture, one of our greatest exports and an endless source of debate,” explained Mary-Alice Stack, development manager at Arts Council England. “Strong contenders for the title of Most Musical City are Manchester, Liverpool and London, but with the winner to be decided by public vote, the competition is wide open. So whether you’re a fan of rock or rap, classical or crunk – get voting.”
People can register their support on the website and vote for their Most Musical City. Unsigned bands and solo artists can register online for the chance to represent their Most Musical City and play in front of 5,000 festival-goers at this year’s End of the Road Festival in Dorset. There are 25 pairs of tickets to the festival up for grabs for anyone who registers their vote.
End of the Road Festival organiser Simon Taffe added: “Supporting new acts is very important to us, and that’s not just out of a sense of musical conscience, but simply because they provide many of the festival’s most exciting musical moments. This year we’ve booked some of our favourite bands of all time – Mercury Rev, Calexico and Dirty Three to name a few – and seeing them will be a dream come true… but being completely blown away by a rising star who’s never played a festival before, that’s really what it’s all about.”
The winning city will be announced in June. A panel of industry experts will choose the winning unsigned acts, as well as one ‘best of the rest’ to perform live at the End of the Road Festival in September.
To vote for your Most Musical City, enter the End of the Road Festival ticket giveaway, register your unsigned band or leave messages of support, visit www.mostmusicalcity.co.uk
artscouncil.org.uk
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