Make Music Day UK

Make Music Day UK, formerly National Music Day, National Music Festival, and Music Day UK, is the name for the British component of the annual celebrations of music that takes place around the world on 21 June, known as Make Music Day in the Anglosphere. The concept of an all-day musical celebration on the day of the solstice was originated in 1982 by the French Minister of Culture, Jack Lang[1] and France continues it under its original name of Fête de la Musique.[2] It was this event that inspired the current UK incarnation.[3][4]

In the UK, the day was launched in 1992, on the initiative of Mick Jagger and Tim Renton MP, at the time Minister of State for the Arts,[5] it ran until 1997. After an unofficial hiatus Music Day UK[6] was formed and is the organisation that has been coordinating UK events since 2012.[7]

Origins

The British National Music Day was the idea of The Rolling Stones' musician Mick Jagger and Tim Renton MP, the at the time Minister of State for the Arts,[5] and launched on 12 February 1992 at a press conference at the Royal Festival Hall, in London, with event Chairman Harvey Goldsmith and Jagger.[8] The first event took place on 28 June 1992, with a programme of more than 1,500 events across the United Kingdom.

The first event was supported by the Musicians' Union (United Kingdom), with 50 of its branches taking part, and small grants were made available by the European Commission for local events with a budget of less than £10,000.[9] The National Music Day Foundation was created to support the events, chaired by Goldsmith, with trustees including Baron Armstrong of Ilminster.[10] To mark the launch Glastonbury Festival, which was taking place on the same weekend, was linked to National Music Day.[11] BBC Radio 1 hosted a National Music Day Roadshow in Glasgow.[12] Richard Allinson won a Gold at Radio Academy Awards for his coverage of the first event on BBC Radio 2,[13] which was part of a 15-hour day of broadcasts to mark the occasion, with shows also presented by Ken Bruce.[14]

In 1993, the event became two days,[15] taking place on 26 and 27 June.[16] It was launched at Hard Rock Cafe, London, by Peter Brooke, Baron Brooke of Sutton Mandeville and Right Said Fred.[17] More 1,100 live events took place across the country.[16] A live broadcast by MCM Networks, and sponsored by Coca-Cola, linked 41 Independent Local Radio stations with venues, and went on to win gold at the Radio Academy Awards for Outstanding Special Event.[18] Buzzcocks performed a live version of their song "Lipstick" on BBC Radio 1 that was later released on a BBC Sessions album by the band in 1997.[19]

The event's third rendition took place on 26 June 1994, and was again marked with a day of broadcasts on BBC Radio 2. Arts Council England awarded £40,000 in grants.[20]

In 1995, BBC coverage of the event continued, which included a special edition of Songs of Praise from Pebble Mill, in Birmingham.[21]

The fifth event took place on 30 June 1996, and coincided with the UEFA Euro 1996 Final.[22] It was now chaired by record producer Keith Lowde, and renamed the National Music Festival. 2,300 events were held, attended by an estimated 3,700,000 people, it is thought that many of these were pre-existing events that would have taken place anyway.[23][24] It was reported that the event had "largely failed to capture the public imagination".[25] Lowde said, in an unpublished interim report for the Foundation:

Whilst finding favour with a large number of event organisers, many of whom were novices, the concept failed to capture the imagination of the professional music industry, sponsors and the media. The perceived image of the " – Day" became generally Middle England, Middle of the Road and Middle Aged.[23]

Despite the event losing cultural significance, it was held again in 1997, with the date moving to August. The List, while reviewing France's National Music Day, reported that the UK efforts had failed to catch-on.[26]

Modern incarnations

In May 2000, BBC Music Live organised a five-day namesake event "National Music Festival" which culminated in a 24-hour broadcast on a bank holiday, Monday 29 May.[27]

In 2012, Music Day UK[6] was formed and was both the name of the renewed event, and the organisation that had been coordinating UK events since 2012.[7] Make Music Day UK became an independent organization in 2022.[28] The event is based on the now international Make Music Day concept, begun in France in 1982. All events take place on 21 June (the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere), and all events are free and accessible to the general public.[29][30]

Notable events

Cultural impact

A number of events that were organised as part of National Music Day continued to run for many years after the national effort ceased to continue. They include:

References
  1. "LA FÊTE DE LA MUSIQUE : UNE FÊTE NATIONALE DEVENUE UN GRAND ÉVÉNEMENT MUSICAL MONDIAL". Le Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication: Fête de la Musique. Archived from the original on 26 April 2015. Retrieved 26 April 2015.
  2. "Présentation de la Fête". Fête de la musique. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  3. Cloonan, Martin (22 April 2016). Popular Music and the State in the UK: Culture, Trade or Industry?. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-07810-4.
  4. "Joining in: Investigation into Participatory Music in the UK - PDF Free Download". epdf.pub. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  5. "The List: 19 Jun 1992". The List Archive. 19 June 1992. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  6. "About Music Day UK". Music Day. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  7. "La Fête de la musique s'étend à plus de 100 pays". Le Parisien. 17 June 2015. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  8. "The Rolling Stones Complete Works database 1992". www.nzentgraf.de. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  9. "1991-2000 – The Musicians' Union: A History (1893-2013)". Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  10. "Quangos - Hansard". hansard.parliament.uk. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  11. Digital, Pretty Good. "Glastonbury Festival - 1992". Glastonbury Festival - 21st-25th June, 2017. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  12. "National Music Day Roadshow". The Radio Times. No. 3574. 25 June 1992. p. 84. ISSN 0033-8060. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  13. Press Office, BBC (4 October 2003). "BBC Radio 2 Live in Newcastle" (PDF). BBC Press Pack: 12.
  14. "BBC Radio 2 - 28 June 1992 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  15. "National music day opens in central London · British Universities Film & Video Council". bufvc.ac.uk. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  16. "NATIONAL MUSIC DAY (No. 2) - Early Day Motions". edm.parliament.uk. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  17. "National Music Day". The Independent. 16 March 1993. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  18. McGeever, Mike (8 May 1993). "Indie Radio Wins Top Sony Radio Awards, BBC Wins Majority" (PDF). Music&Media. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  19. "BBC Sessions". Buzzcocks. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  20. "Arts Council England, Annual Report 1994-95" (PDF). p. 72.
  21. "National Music Day". The Radio Times. No. 3727. 22 June 1995. p. 120. ISSN 0033-8060. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  22. "Lords Hansard text for 31 Jan 1996 (160131-01)". publications.parliament.uk. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  23. "Joining in: Investigation into Participatory Music in the UK - PDF Free Download". epdf.pub. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  24. The Times , 1996, UK, English. 1996.
  25. Clark-Meads, Jeff (13 January 1996). "Brit Awards Land A Gov't Minister". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc.
  26. "The List: 13 Jun 1997". The List Archive. 13 June 1997. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  27. Oliver, Sandra (22 April 2004). A Handbook of Corporate Communication and Public Relations. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-134-31448-5.
  28. "Make Music Around the World". Make Music Day. 17 October 2023. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
  29. "Home". Make Music Day. 19 January 2023. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
  30. "About Make Music". Make Music Day. 26 July 2023. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
  31. "It's National Music Day III!". The Radio Times. No. 3676. 23 June 1994. p. 100. ISSN 0033-8060. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  32. Gregory, Andy (2002). The International Who's Who in Popular Music 2002. Psychology Press. p. 253. ISBN 978-1-85743-161-2.
  33. Perrone, Pierre (5 March 1999). "Jagger sings the blues". The Independent. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  34. "The Rolling Stones A Celebration Of The Blues UK tour programme". eil.com. Retrieved 14 May 2023.
  35. "Leigh Folk Festival | Our History". Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  36. "Pulham Music Day". www.pulhammusicday.co.uk. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
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