Music lovers are invited to try their hand at steel drumming, have a go at bellringing and take the floor for a vibrant 'Strip the Willow' at the UNI-Versal Music Festival which has been officially launched.
Taking place on November 25 and 26 in various locations around the Old Aberdeen campus, the new event will be a mini festival of musical performances and workshops inspired by local people and places. This is the fifth mini-festival from the UNI-versal series, and draws on existing music and voices from the region, past and present from within the University’s music department and beyond.
Events include a ‘Music and gender roundtable talk by Popgirlz Scotland’ on Friday 25 November. Popgirlz Scotland is a support group for female/female-identifying/trans artists in the Scottish music scene. Join Rachel Alice Johnson (‘Kohla’) and Josephine Sillars for this insightful discussion where they will break down Vick Bain’s ‘Counting the Music Industry’ research, discussing inequalities within playlisting and spotlight articles published in The Times, The Glasgow Guardian, and The Scotsman.
Festivalgoers can take the opportunity to hear a very different take on well-known hymns at the ‘All things Vile and Terrible’ event at King’s College Chapel on November 25. This fascinating event as we explore a handful of well-loved hymns with problematic themes and consider what to do about this congregational inheritance. There will be scholarly perspectives from musicology and divinity alongside creative contributions from student musicians.
Hands on activities include bellringing, a Balinese gamelan gong workshop and a Caribbean Steel Pans workshop where keen participants can have a go at trying this diverse range of instruments.
The festival will close with a ‘skirl’ on Saturday 26 November where everyone can dust off their dancing shoes and enjoy lots of lively celidih dances and live music from 18th Century Scotland.
Pauline Black, Head of Music at the University said: “We are delighted to invite the whole community to our beautiful campus to enjoy the first-ever UNI-Versal Music Festival.
“The University’s music department has worked alongside inspiring local musicians to create a diverse and entertaining programme that includes workshops, performances and talks that that will suit all ages and interests.
“We have a wealth of talent on our doorstep, and this is a fantastic opportunity to shine a light on that. We look forward to welcoming everyone along to enjoy a festival of laughter, music and song.”