The London International Music Show 2008

Vox pops filmed at the end of education day.

Some highlights of the Q&A session in this clip

The MIA talked to the industry and asked them what they wanted in a show. The biggest request was for one big show instead of many smaller shows. LIMS is a new show and a brand new format being launched in a tough economic climate.

What a great effort by all the exhibitors - the quality of the show is really good - attendance so far has been better than expected and there are lots of ideas for how we could do more next year.

It is great to see so many parts of the industry, instruments, equipment, education etc., coming together and giving us a show we can be proud of. Many of us have been to Frankfurt and Namm and seen the buzz that these shows create and many have asked “Why can’t we create this buzz in the UK?”.

Well we have done it. The show is a credit to all involved and all who have supported it. Finally we have a chance to really fly the flag for the UK music industry.

Rob Castle President Music Industries Association and Managing Director Korg UK.

Nearly the end of the first ever Education Festival at London International Music Show, and time for some reflections, praise — and challenges — from those who’ve attended. Nick Howdle of the Music Manifesto has an interesting question — let us know what you think.

“Interesting afternoon, good to see education issues being discussed under the same roof as instrument sales though we’ve some way to go on linking the two better. How, in future should we do that?

In this clip, Sir Ken Robinson talks about the way in which creativity and intelligence are often seen as mutually exclusive.

“It’s still remarkable to me that most schools don’t treat music or art or dance as seriously as they treat mathematics and English…”

Student reporters have been working with Radiowaves, to capture some of the action here at Excel today.

Check out some of their shots over at lims mobile blog on the Radiowaves site »

Don’t miss the beginners’ drum workshop happening in the learning room. Pick up some cool drum skills, with the chance to play along with a backing track to an audience at the end.

Brace yourself for an explosion of cutting edge indie rock spliced with fried leftfield electronica. The Infadels are a top 5 UK Indie Chart act with plays on Radio 1 under their belt and a string of summer festivals lined up.

Catch them on the sun stage!

infadels.co.uk »

If keys are your thing, be sure to check out the beautiful pianos on the Yamaha stand. We’ve seen lots of engrossed players there!

Head over to the Roland Drummer Live stand to brush up your breakbeats!

At 2pm and 3pm, there’s chance for you to play along live in the concourse with some of your guitar, bass and drum heroes.

Suitable for 9 to 90 year-olds. It’s sure to bring the house down!

Starting at 13.30, in the Festival Field…

ALL TOGETHER NOW: Sir Ken Robinson is one of the world’s most inspirational thinkers and speakers on creativity, education and the arts.

Hear his case for establishing a global movement for education that recognises different ways of nurturing and promoting human capacity.

Using a mixture of analysis, anecdote and humour, Sir Ken will force you to reflect. What contribution could you or your industry make? What are the alternatives? And can the UK lead the way?

Jazz pianist, singer and Guildhall Professor of Jazz, Pete Churchill, has just finished an excellent session on the thorny issue of improvising. In this clip, find out what music teacher Graham Casey thought of the seminar…

These guys are great, and we think they enjoyed their show!

In your face, urban soul rock fronted by two amazing female vocalists. The band are all music students with Access to Music.

Coming to a festival near you very soon!

Sylencers on myspace >>

At 12.45, David Juritz from ESTA will be talking and playing violin on the acoustic stage. He’ll be playing clips from his trip around the World where he played solo violin on the streets of 50 towns and cities, to launch a new charity, Musequality.

Musequality was set up to take music projects to some of the poorest children in the developing world >>

Alice Lemon, from the Musician’s Union, has just finished a top-notch session looking at how writers can exploit their copyrights to make a living.

musiciansunion.org.uk represents over thirty thousand musicians and offers a range of services for professional and student musicians of all ages.

If this is you, make sure you don’t miss the session starting at 11.35: “Getting into the Industry”.

Colin Murray from Radio 1 talks to Neil Ridley, former A&R for BMG and Warners, and Mark Denby, Digital Manager for Universal.

Head over to the Sun Stage in the Festival Field.

We’re updating this blog from the MB Media stand just by the main entrance. Come and say hello if you’re passing!

Starting shortly at 11.15: Making the Most of Your Audition: organized by Access to Music.

Head over to the Vision stage for this invaluable session from Conservatoires UK. It’s designed to give students and teachers a real insight into the process of auditioning successfully to study at a conservatoire.

How should you prepare, what should you expect, and how can you be your best?

If you’ve got an audition coming up soon — good luck!

Sir Ken Robinson, Festival Field 13.30

ALL TOGETHER NOW: Sir Ken Robinson is one of the world’s most inspirational thinkers and speakers on creativity, education and the arts.

Hear his case for establishing a global movement for education that recognises different ways of nurturing and promoting human capacity. Using a mixture of analysis, anecdote and humour, Sir Ken will force you to reflect. What contribution could you or your industry make? What are the alternatives? And can the UK lead the way?

Now running in the classroom - Sonar, an introduction for teachers. Pick up practical advice and simple tips from Roland/Edirol on getting creative with music technology.

There’s a buzz in the place as people are starting to pour through the doors. Amps are warming up, and drum kits are being eyed up! We’ve even heard the Sir Ken Robinson is in the building : )

Starting now: Make your living writing music, The Musicians’ Union’s Alice Lemon gives advice and tips to aspiring and experienced writers on protecting their copyright, as well as collaborative writing and turning from amateur to professional.

Keep an eye on this blog throughout today (Friday June 13th) and the weekend as we feature exclusive interviews, extracts from seminars and films from LIMS ‘08 Education Day — the UK’s greatest festival of music learning.

It’s always amazing to watch a big event come together. Less than 24 hours to go and the giant halls at Excel still look like a building site, albeit a building site with rack upon rack of beautifully polished, expensive guitars and glittering drum kits.

But it’s beginning to make sense — the different stages and halls are taking shape, the artists’ dressing rooms are built and the swivel chairs have been delivered, still shrink-wrapped, for the Question Time session on Friday.

By tomorrow, the army of gaffer-tape wielding set builders will have disappeared and the final touches will be put to the Festival Field. On Friday, the UK’s leading celebration of music education will be in full effect.

See you there.

Among the host of good deals and potential giveaways at LIMS ‘08, ESTA (the European String Teachers Association) is giving away an Apple I-touch, plus signed music by Maxim Vengerov and Steven Isserlis.

To be in with a chance of winning an I-touch, you have to guess what year the fine violin on the ESTA stand (M4) was made.

The signed music from these world famous soloists is open to those who join ESTA during the event. – the lucky name drawn out of a hat on Sunday.

Acclaimed composer and broadcaster, and National Ambassador for Singing, Howard Goodall, writes for the LIMS ‘08 blog:

If you’re coming along to LIMS on Friday 13th June (Education Day), make sure you check out the Sandarac stand — where you’ll be able to meet and hear the “Haringey Young Musicians”. The string quartet - Grace Hill – violin; Lara Spencer – violin; Tom Andrews – viola; and George Andrews – cello - are from the Haringey Music and Performing Arts Centre. The group will be playing Sandarac supplied Kremona instruments to premiere a new composition called ‘Waiting Reloaded’ written by Sandarac endorsee, and good friend, the multi-talented Darren Taylor.

They’re publicising Sandarac’s innovative new scheme for educationalists called ‘Hire to Inspire’:

“Sandarac fully appreciates the extent to which a good instrument can inspire the young musician to simply want to play for the pure pleasure of making music. Sandarac’s founders are both musicians who fully understand the constraints imposed on young musicians due to available budget and parental concerns about commitment. Often, in their early musical education, our young players are forced to struggle with poor quality instruments. This makes learning how to master the instrument far more difficult than it needs to be. Small wonder that many fail to stay the course out of sheer frustration with their instrument. In addition, the cheaper ‘stock’ school instrument tends to produce an inferior quality of sound. Better quality, properly set up and maintained, instruments inevitably produce a better quality of sound – surely a Godsend for teachers, parents, neighbours, and siblings of any budding Menhuin or Du Pré.

The availability of budget instruments from the Far East has certainly made it affordable for many more people to aspire to making music. Unfortunately, many of these instruments fail to inspire the new player as they are often difficult to play and do not offer a good sound. In response Sandarac has put together a new Hire to Inspire scheme designed for educational centres, schools, parents and teachers. The scheme provides a quality outfit (instrument, bow, and case), for an affordable price, aimed at inspiring young musicians to achieve their best. All outfits are set up in house by our expert luthiers and are easy to play from the first note.”

So, stop by the stand, enjoy some beautiful music from the Haringey Young Musicians, and find out how Sandarac can help you or your organisation to inspire the next generation of string players.

Visitors to Education Day at LIMS ‘08 (Friday 13 June) will soon spot there’s a festival theme to the whole event — nowhere more so than in the Festival Field area run by Access to Music. ATM’s Martin Smith explains:

“Festival Field strives to provide an educational experience within a fun, festival-style atmosphere. Live music, interactive music workshops, masterclasses, a National Busker’s Competition and chat show features will run off three stages, while stilt walkers and face painters will create that essential festival vibe.”

The “Sun” stage in the Festival Field will play host to keynote speaker Sir Ken Robinson, and later a performance by band-of-the-moment The Infadels.

Martin Smith again “This is an exciting opportunity to do something a bit different. Festival Field promises to break the mould by providing a festival-style music education experience at a major international music show. With Glastonbury just around the corner, this is a great chance for aspiring musicians to have their own festival dedicated to helping them develop their talent.”

Check out all the Education Day activity here.