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London's Exhibition Road Gears Up For Musical Extravaganza
By 24 Hour Museum Staff
16/06/2008
Indie rock dinosaurs? British Sea Power will be playing underneath a big dinosaur at the Natural History Museum.
London’s annual Exhibition Road Music Day is taking place again this coming weekend in the capital’s museum quarter. The unique free festival of live music from around the globe fills the halls of some of our most famous museums and spills onto the roads and parks adjoining them.
The V&A, the Natural History Museum and the Serpentine Gallery are among the major venues taking part in the annual bash on June 21 2008.
The day will see over 150 performances from a wide range of musical acts plying their trade in unusual locations – from indie darlings British Sea Power performing in the shadow of the Natural History Museum’s biggest dinosaur to 19 year-old pop chanteuse Eliza Doolittle at the Goethe Institute.
Elsewhere music from right across the globe will spill out across Exhibition Road, which will be closed to traffic to become home to an array of Samba bands, African and Indian percussionists, clog dancers, throat singers and blues warblers.
Image: a photograph of a smiling woman in samba gear
They will be samba-ing across Exhibtion Road...
Throughout the day a huge range of workshops suitable for all ages will accompany the performances, including Bollywood, Samba and Ceilidh dance workshops and Indian and Chinese percussion sessions, music workshops by the Ismaili Community Ensemble and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra as Exhibition Road celebrates the diversity of international culture in the area.
“We have an astounding line-up this year in Exhibition Road which just demonstrates the breadth, creativity and internationalism of our many institutions,” said David Anderson, Co-chair, Exhibition Road Cultural Group and Director of Learning and Interpretation at the V&A.
“We are looking forward to welcoming thousands of people to Music Day. It really will be a thrilling event with music to suit all tastes.”
Image: a photograph of a group of four men with a woman in front of them in classic rock group pose
German electro punk popsters, MIA, will be doing their thing at the Goethe Institute.
Running between 10am and midnight the day is the capital’s contribution to ‘Fête de la Musique’, a renowned worldwide celebration of music on the longest day of the year.
It is organised by the leading cultural and educational establishments in the UK working in partnership as the Exhibition Road Cultural Group, including : Goethe-Institut, Institut Français, Imperial College London, Ismaili Centre, Natural History Museum, Serpentine Gallery, Royal Albert Hall, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, The Royal Parks, Royal College of Music, V&A and Westminster City Council.
The day will also be a chance to highlight the potential of the radical ‘shared space’ traffic-calming scheme for the street envisioned by Dixon Jones Architects and the local authorities to create a more pedestrian friendly thoroughfare for Exhibition Road. Plans for the ambitious £30m redevelopment, which promises to turn the busy road into one of the finest streetscapes in London, will be on display throughout the day.
Chilling out in 2007 at the Serpentine Gallery and Royal Parks stage.
For more information about the day, including running times and entry details see the Exhibition Road Music Day website: www.exhibitionroadmusicday.org.
For more general information about the Exhibition Road Cultural Group see www.exhibitionroad.com.
Victoria and Albert Museum
Victoria and Albert Museum, Cromwell Road, South Kensington, London, SW7 2RL, England
Open: Daily 1000-1745
Fri 1000-2200
Closed: 24-26 December
Serpentine Gallery
Serpentine Gallery, Kensington Gardens, London, W2 3XA, England
T: 020 7402 6075
Open: Gallery open daily from 10am to 6pm
Natural History Museum, London
The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London, SW7 5BD, England
T: 020 7942 5000
Open: 10.00-17.50 daily
Last admission is 17.30
Closed: Closed on 24, 25 and 26 December ONLY
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