Tag: live music

Final Waverley Sessions of 2019 this weekend

Waverley Mall, Edinburgh and The Youth Radio Network are set to host the final Waverley Sessions of 2019 this weekend – Saturday 21st and Sunday 22nd December 2019.

The popular monthly music event, which is a collaboration between the busy city centre shopping centre and youth music organisation, The Youth Radio Network, has been gaining traction over the last 12 months.

This weekend will see a selection of some of the best acts they have seen throughout the year, taking to the stage across the weekend. The event will run from 11am – 4pm on Saturday and 12pm-4pm on Sunday.

Acts taking to the stage this weekend include 14-year-old Lewis Capaldi fan  Evie McDonald from Grangemouth and 21-year-old pop and country singer Liv Dawn from Loch Lomond. Others include Leigh Tiley, Euan Russell, Nicole Carlin, Blair Gilmore and Rebecca Swallow.

Customers are promised a weekend packed with toe-tapping tunes, some festive specials and a fabulously Christmassy atmosphere throughout the Waverley Mall food court as the musicians get them in the mood for Christmas.

Keiran Harvey and the team of volunteers from The Youth Radio Network will be hosting the weekend’s entertainment and while there is no age limit, with the support of the team from The Youth Radio Network, young artists in particular are offered the opportunity gain public performance experience and increase their sense of self confidence.

The Youth Radio Network’s vision is to empower, teach and entertain young people, aged 13 to 25 years, through the power of music and digital technology, opening doors to the broadcast industries, and to become more employable helping them to get the best start in life.

Their role includes teaching young people the ropes of the broadcast industry and helping to prepare them for employment through CV preparation, mock interviews and confidence building.

Through their work with Waverley Mall they are empowering young people – giving them opportunities, skills and equipment as well as hands on experience in a real life setting for a future in the music / broadcast industry.

By providing a platform to perform, Waverley Mall is building on this opportunity with the chance to build personal confidence in performing in public.

Jacquelyn Stewart, General Manager, Waverley Mall says: “We’re looking forward to singing out 2019 in style with the final edition of The Waverley Sessions this year.

“It will be great to see so many familiar faces taking to the stage across the weekend to get everyone in the Christmas spirit.”

Keiran Harvey, CEO, The Youth Radio Network says: “It has been incredible to work with Waverley Mall on The Waverley Sessions this year.

“We’ve uncovered such a huge variety of artists this year, who have done nothing but surprise us with their talent, enthusiasm and energy throughout their stint on our stage.”

Leith Depot take the fight for survival to the City Chambers

This is a very important week for us, folks. We kicked off Independent Venue Week on Monday. This is our third year supporting this amazing festival and it’s the week to recognise what all of our small independent venues bring to music in our towns and cities. It’s time to celebrate the spirit of independence and the cultural importance of live music.

Horribly, this all happens against the backdrop of our fight to save our own independent venue.

We meet for the hearing at the City Chambers this Wednesday 30th at 12:30pm, we will put our case to 11 elected councillors who ultimately will make the final decision.

We hope the planning committee will make the right decision and represent and respect local democracy. (Meeting at Leith Depot at 11am so if you need a lift, DM us).

Leith Depot

#saveleithwalk #independentvenueweek
#stopthedemolition
#savelocalbusinesses
#persevere #leith

Edinburgh: live music matters

Local music professionals have joined forces with officials from the City of Edinburgh Council to discuss the state of the Capital’s live music scene.

jazzAt Live Music Matters, an open forum held at the Usher Hall last night, a jam-packed audience of musicians, gig promoters, venue managers and academics discussed the current live music offering in Edinburgh and shared ideas on how to enhance the experience of live music for musicians and concertgoers. 

The debate was organised following a commitment in June by the Council’s Culture and Sport Committee to increase understanding and awareness of the live music scene in Edinburgh, in order to capture the key issues and opportunities facing the music community in the Capital.

Council policy on entertainment noise levels, the licensing and provision of live music venues in Edinburgh, and the support of grassroots talent emerged as hot topics for the local music community.

Councillor Norma Austin Hart, Vice Convener for Culture and Sport, said: “It is only right that debate about the city’s music scene is led by the experience and insight of local professionals. The Council-run and operated Usher Hall provides an ideal venue for the Live Music Matters open forum to discuss the current offering that we have in Edinburgh, and ideas for making it even better.

“What has become clear from the debate is that Edinburgh has a passionate and proud music industry, burgeoning with creative talent, and as a city we need to support this talent.

“Many venue owners and musicians feel that the Council’s current policy on noise levels can be a barrier to the development of Edinburgh’s music scene. To tackle this, we will specifically look at the current rules, and how these rules impact entertainment venues and residents.

“The meeting has also highlighted the importance many people attach to music venues, which goes far beyond sentiment and is really around cultural enrichment. The music community has told us they want Edinburgh’s music venues to be protected, and so we will aim to identify whether that is an option, perhaps through a register of cultural venues.

“Looking at ways to maintain and improve the city’s live music offering is a responsibility we need to face head on, and the Live Music Matters debate is only the beginning. We will now be gathering the comments and ideas from today’s discussion to look at ways we might be able to address them. Working in partnership will be crucial and the meeting today has reinforced that message. We will now set up a task force, called Music is Audible, with representatives from the music industry as well as the council.”

Karl Chapman, general manager of the Usher Hall, said: “The Usher Hall is a well placed venue to host this important debate, not just because it’s cultural importance in developing the arts and live music in the city, but also because it’s owned by the Council.

“The debate has been truly fascinating and I was surprised and delighted to see the tickets go so quickly. It’s been incredibly inspiring to hear everyone’s thoughts from across the industry today. The event has certainly shown there is a demand for a healthy live music scene in the city and the City of Edinburgh Council and the Usher Hall are committed to supporting Live Music Matters by hosting future meetings here in the venue.”

John Stout, promoter at Regular Music, added: “It’s fantastic to see the Council kick off this much needed conversation, and the open forum at the Usher Hall has covered the whole spectrum of live music in the city.

“The contribution that these events make to the local economy and towards making Edinburgh a cosmopolitan city can’t be underestimated. It will be interesting to see what the Council’s next steps will be.”

The debate will continue on social media and residents can share thoughts on Twitter using #livemusicmatters, and on the Council’s blog.

Further updates on the programme will become available later in the year.

Usher Hall box office

The Usher Hall is owned and managed by the City of Edinburgh Council, is an international concert which has a maximum capacity of 2900, hosts around 200 concerts and sells around 220,000 tickets annually.