A night of live music, local businesses and networking took place at the Globe on Tuesday night. Organised by students from Newcastle University, the night took place as part of their module work for this year.
Starting off with the act AFOSS Brightly, the night began with music that was a mixture of contemporary traditional music with aesthetic electronica. It included live looping and DJing, and his music has been described as being a “Multi-instrumental journey” which explores “emotional expression in modern music”. Following this act was the Thomas Dixon Quartet, and then No Fox finished the night. Consisting of musicians from Newcastle University itself, No Fox is a quintet that blends jazz, funk, afro and fusion to “create a sound that is influenced by both contemporary and classic jazz”, as their Facebook says.
Pippa Morgan, a music student, along with David Card and Jaz Smith, both combined honours student, collaborated to make the night happen. Pippa tells us that the evening was all about “’bridging the gap between the young musicians and local music businesses, giving opportunities for anyone who wants to dive into the industry”. It was an opportunity for aspiring musicians to see “what opportunities are available to them”, and “giving a platform for supporting up and coming bands in Newcastle”. This was achieved through inviting guest speakers to talk between the acts.
With all proceeds going to charity, the event was raising money for Music Minds Matter (Help Musicians UK). This is a charity which helps those facing mental health problems within the music industry. It offers an emergency line for anyone who needs to talk about their welfare, relationships, physical health, employment and financial strains, whether these are related to their music or not. It has offered support since 1921, and as their website states, they aim to “create a sustainable future for all musicians and the industry”. They are working “in partnership to transform the music industry through advocacy, campaigning, programmes and targeted investment for all those within it.” One of their largest achievements to date is commissioning the University of Westminster and MusicTank to undertake the largest known study into mental health and the music industry, and so the money raised from this event will help in all of these places.
David Card said that it took a lot of effort to organise, but that he is "so glad that it turned out as well as it did".
The event showcased some of the work that Newcastle students are constantly undertaking as part of their degree. The night was a success and saw the Globe packed with both students and musicians from other walks of life.