Coventry Music Exhibition Trev's Notes March 5th 2008)
and below the minutes of the meeting>
Just got back from Cov where I attended a meeting for the proposed Coventry Music Exhibition earmarked for the reopened Herbert Museum and Art Gallery in October 2009.
I'm still awaiting the summary of the meeting from the Herbert but some points -
We are at the early stage of discussing ideas, gathering information, contacts and resources. The real work on developing the Exhibition, which will be a temporary thing until Jan 2010, will begin in October 2008, giving a full year for the project plan to develop through research, consultations, collecting objects and oral history resources, design, fundraising etc.
It is hoped that the Exhibition will develop and become a permanent feature at the Herbert.
TWO TONE JAM SESSION
This time around Two Toner Neol Davies was in attendance and we discussed the possiblility of an organised Two Tone jam session / concert / DVD to launch the museum, both because a central focus of the exhibition will be Two Tone (although the whole range of Coventry Music History will be represented to various degrees) and also because 2009 is the 30th anniversary of Two Tone anyway and the city should be celebrating one of its greatest achievments and assets. There is still a lot of discussion and planning needed around this exciting idea and Hobo will keep you informed of developments.
NEED YOUR IDEAS AND FEEDBACK
The group that met consisted mainly of the Herbert's staff and local media representatives and a few musos such as Pete Chambers, Neol Davies and Trev Teasdel. Others such as Roger Lomas are also involved. However we need to get more ideas and thoughts from Cov musicians past and present in the lead up to the Exhibition preparations in October.
A statement from the Herbert reads -
"This exhibition will cover the history of the popular music scene in Coventry from the 1950s to the present day. It aims to celebrate the Coventry bands of those years and inspire the next generation of musicians in the city. Familiar names featured will range from Frank Ifield and Vince Hill in the early days of rock and roll, through the Two Tone bands like the Specials and the Selecter, to the city's latest pop successes, the Enemy. The exhibition will also feature the venues, such as the Locarno and the Lanch, where top bands like the Beatles and Sex Pistols played in their heyday. It will also focus on the fans who bought the records, wore the clothes and collected the memorabilia. The exhibition will include music, film and interviews with band members and fans, and there will be a chance to see instruments, clothing and gold disks loaned by some of the stars."
But we need to know what bands / styles / venues etc you think should be featured and why in each decade since the 50's. Do you have any ideas for interesting displays. In short what do you think would be important to include in such an exhibition? It may not be possible to include all the ideas you send in but all of the feedback will be relayed to the Exhibition committee. Let's have your imput Coventry!
The Herbert have set up a website to keep you informed
http://www.theherbert.org/blog/blog.htm
Neol Davies suggested that the Herbert create a My Space for the Exhibition which might be more accessible for Cov musos. Hobo will link to it when it is up and ready and put it in our Top Friends list. Meanwhile you can send your thoughts and ideas to this Hobo site. We are hoping for a good response here - after all the museum will be reflecting your music scene and musical heritage Cov people!
Budget
Although there will be core funding for this project, ideas for sponsorship and co funding are being sought. If you have any thoughts on this - please let us know.
INTERACTIVE PROGRAMME
For after the Exhibition is up, we discussed ideas for interactive and cultural projects around the Exhibition. These may include school visits and workshops; adult education involvement; music, songwriting and recording workshops linked to the work of the Depot studios now based at the Herbert; performances in the coffee bar area; drama on Cov music history - this may include new works, drama / musical shorts or plays with a musical relevance that have already been written; photographic displays and more.
The point of this is so that the Exhibition doesn't just denote the history of Coventry Music scene but is also actively supporting and inspiring the continued development of the city's musical heritage. So please - any thoughts and ideas on these aspects. These interactive intiatives will also attract more visitors to the Exhibition. This support will be essential if we want it to become a pemanent and developing feature at the Hertbert. So spread the word and give your support. This is your history!
Through the work of Pete Chambers and the new Gnome Label's Retro-Cov series, there will be a plentiful supply of books and CD's / downloads to support the Exhibition.
More updates later -
Trev Teasdel
THE HERBERT'S NOTES OF THE MEETING
Notes on the Coventry Music Exhibiton Meeting by the Hertbert
Present: Pete Chambers, Trevor Teasdel, Neol Davies, Dave Fisher, Peter Walters, Richard Elms, Jo Whitford, Huw Jones, Erin Hollis, Dominic Bubb, Martin Roberts
Apologies: Roger Lomas, Roger Vaughan
1. Exhibition development
2009 is the 30th anniversary of Two Tone. There is the possibility of the Specials and The Selecter reforming. There could be a celebration of this anniversary in Coventry running over a period of several months and involving a number of other organisations and venues. The exhibition would be major part of this. The celebration could start in the summer with the Godiva Festival – Friday night could have a Two Tone/Ska theme, with newer bands from e.g. Latin America as well. This would be a very high profile event and would help to promote the exhibition.
2009 is also the year when Coventry group The Zodiacs celebrate 50 years in music. This could be commemorated through the exhibition.
The basic aims, content and target audiences for the exhibition were agreed to be as described on the blog.
Agreed that it would be useful to include a timeline which placed the music in the context of what was happening in Coventry at the time. Agreed to explore further the idea of recreating Jerry Dammers’ flat in the exhibition. Also agreed that we need to ensure that Two Tone doesn’t dominate the exhibition too much.
It may be useful to involve rock historian Simon Frith and it also may be interesting to have a Two Tone family tree drawn up, possibly by Peter Frame.
One possible activity would be to set up mixing system for people to create their own mixes from original tracks. This could be a gallery activity or be done through workshops.
In order to move the exhibition forward we now need to compile a list of contact names and details of people who can offer practical assistance, eg by lending items for the exhibition, being interviewed, providing information, images, etc. The Herbert staff are happy to follow these up.
The exhibition will take place in the Herbert’s Gallery 4 which is 15.9m x 9.4m (149 sq.m)
2. Project Plan and Milestones
A draft paper outlining a timetable for the exhibition development was circulated for comment. The Herbert staff will have more capacity to work on the development of the exhibition after October when the Herbert redevelopment is delivered. An exhibition designer can be appointed soon after this, who will work with the exhibition team to finalise the themes, content and layout of the exhibition. By this stage it would be useful to have a detailed list of objects, images, interviews and other information for inclusion.
3. Funding
Ideas for potential project sponsors were discussed, including EMI, the Ricoh Arena (Dave to pursue), Coventry Airport (Dave to pursue), Coventry businesses, Coventry Building Society, AWM (Peter W to pursue) and private individuals. All agreed to think about possible sponsors and pass contacts on to Herbert team.
The possibility of generating income through the sale of branded merchandise was also discussed.
4. Events programme
Jo outlined ideas for the kinds of events that could be staged to support the exhibition. These include talks, film showings, live bands, master classes by established musicians, events for schools and families, workshops (eg DJ workshops) and possibly a commissioned theatre productions (maybe along the lines of 3 Minute Heroes).
Events can take place in the gallery itself, but also in the Studio space, the café, the education spaces and the media studios.
Further ideas for events or useful contacts to be sent to Jo or put on blog.
Agreed that any information which includes personal details (eg addresses, phone numbers, etc) should be emailed direct to Herbert staff rather than being placed on the blog. Agreed to investigate possibility of setting up a MySpace page for the exhibition.
5. Next meeting
This will take place in June/July. Exact date tbc.
NEW 2013 visit TWO TONE CENTRAL MUSEUM - which came out of this thanks to Pete Chambers http://www.2tonecentral.co.uk/
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