Leeds Beckett University - City Campus,
Woodhouse Lane,
LS1 3HE
Workshop to appreciate the importance of pop music in Leeds
Led by Karl Spracklen, Professor of Leisure Studies at Leeds Beckett and the Secretary for the International Society for Metal Music Studies, the workshop, entitled ‘Leeds Music: Culture, Spaces, Scenes’, will take place from 5-8pm in the Acre Room at the University’s Headingley Campus and is free and open to the public. Please book a place at http://bit.ly/PopWorkshop​. A buffet and wine reception will follow.
Professor Spracklen explained: “Leeds has a thriving music scene by any count: the number of live gigs, the number of musicians, the number of nightclubs and the diversity of the music genres represented. From the emergence of the Gang of Four and the post-punk scene around the F-Club, through the goth-rock of the Faversham and the club nights of the 21st Century, Leeds music’s leisure and cultural spaces are places for memory, for fun, for belonging, and for business.”
The workshop will be a chance to discuss Leeds Beckett researchers’ current work, finding out what researchers say about the Leeds music scene, its culture, its people and its networks. It will be an opportunity to listen to notes from the field as well to take part in on-going debates and conversations about the role of music in Leeds.
Professor Spracklen added: “This workshop is partly for other academics who are studying music scenes or other aspects of culture and place, in Leeds or other cities. But it is also for people who are involved in the Leeds music scene as dedicated fans, promoters or musicians. We hope to get a network of people going to help us map out bigger research projects around Leeds music.”
Research being discussed at the event, which is supported by the University's Media and Place research cluster, will include Stuart Moss’s work around entrepreneurship amongst independent club night promoters in Leeds, PhD student Gabby Riches’s research into the Leeds extreme metal scene, and Sam Nicholls’s investigations into introducing a Leeds music industry and enterprise development network.