THOUSANDS OF PERFORMANCES TOOK PLACE ACROSS THE UK ON 21 JUNE
#MakeMusicDayUK
This year’s summer solstice, 21 June, saw the fifth annual UK-based Make Music Day moving to a hybrid model of live and online events with great success. Celebrating the joy of music and its ability to not only entertain but also to bring communities together, the global grassroots event that began in France as Fete de la Musique in 1982 proved that music transcends even social distancing with thousands of performers streaming gigs and taking part in in-person events throughout the day.
From the Scottish Highlands to the south coast, and Norfolk to Northern Ireland a total of 3,589 live and online performances took place, involving 31,122 performers who brought inspiring musical experiences to 330,336 people and reached 2 million via #MakeMusicDayUK.
Notable performances included Sing Together Wiltshire with 7,753 performers across 52 schools taking part, 30,000 views so far for a rendition of ‘Stand By Me’ by ABRSM (Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music), a host of ‘Stand By Me’ cover version submissions for our competition, won by Reel Youth Media, and 56 producers signed up to our MixMash Studios project receiving 108 submitted samples, a selection of wondrous Window Serenades, plethora of Rock’n’Roll Misadventures in Libraries premieres as well as so much more!
The Make Music Day Broadcast
The official Make Music Day UK broadcast featured a plethora of artists, activities and performances too, ranging from Durham Music’s Global Big Sing, Frisson Foundation present ‘Sign at the gate’ and Cap O’Rushes Inclusive Ensembles. In addition, Newham Music presented a South Asian Music Workshop, Live Music Now with musician Ford Collier, took us on a journey from Western classical through folk and jazz to beatboxing and back again, and our International Drum Battle saw 30 bands from the Netherlands, Brazil, Nigeria, India, Slovenia, Lithuania, United States, UK and Mexico beat it out. Plus, Beyond Skin led the way with their international 4’33” project, our Solo Artist Stage featured performances from Olaide Steele, Fragile Lucy and SK Shlomo before Jazz in South Wales with James Chadwick and MSCTY x London Bridge’s Nick Luscombe in conversation with musicians Elsa Hewitt and Kirk Barley about their sonic responses to locations close to Tower Bridge. The evening broadcast was brought in by Making Music, British Black Music Selection, Syncopate – City Of Edinburgh Schools’ Digital Concert, MixMash Studios and finally, Hands Up for Trad International Showcase.
Archive
You can still catch up with official Make Music Day broadcast performances and revisit the 2021 projects by visiting the Archive and other performances can be found by searching #makemusicdayuk on social media and YouTube. Don’t forget to check out images of Make Music Day participants and performers across the country on our Gallery pages.
What next?
Preparations are now underway for Make Music Day 2022, but before that – save the date and watch this space for more details soon!
