Gigbeth festival announces music conference key speakers

Gigbeth which takes place on Friday 7th and Saturday 8th November in Digbeth, Birmingham have announced the key artists and industry speakers to talk at a music industry conference, to be held as part of the festival at the Radisson SAS hotel in the heart of the city on Thursday 6th November.

The music conference will include seminars, talks and debates on a wide range of topics, all affecting the modern music industry. Key subjects will include music law, the threat of file sharing, promoting yourself online, utilising the music press and the effect of the credit crunch on the music industry.

There will also be special seminars by artists including The Guillemots front man Fyfe Dangerfield who will be talking about the role that musical education played in his career, and alto jazz saxophonist Soweto Kinch will give a seminar entitled 'War in a rack', exploring techniques for musicians to get noticed in today's crowded marketplace.

Clare Edwards, Gigbeth creator and organiser said, "Gigbeth is a great event for Birmingham and we are really pleased to have secured both internationally recognised artists and industry speakers for the conference this year. Birmingham has a rich musical culture and the city needs a conference that attracts keynote speakers with significant prominence such as these."

The Gigbeth 2008 music conference will have speakers including Stephen Godfroy from Rough Trade, Steve Tilley of Kilimanjaro Live, and Radio Two's Janice Long.

The festival will also feature music from artists including Kano, Fabio, Sugarhill Gang, Guillemots, Young Knives, Stanton Warriors, D:Ream, Miles and Erica Hunt (Wonderstuff), Oliver $, Miss Moneypennies, Subfocus, Pete Jordan, Joetbot, Anathema, The Hair, Miccoli, Dr Meaker, DJ Switch, and many more. For the line-up details as available please click here.

Based in the Digbeth area of Birmingham, more than ten venues in Digbeth are used including an outdoor main stage at Millennium Point, venues range from the Barfly and the Custard Factory through to South Birmingham College and the Glee Club.

The organisers have teamed up with Music Live at the NEC which also runs that weekend to give visitors double the amount to do while they are in Brum. The music on the stages will also be linked into school and music service events in the region to encourage direct progression for young groups.

Tickets are priced at £15 for Friday, £18 for Saturday, or £25 for the entire weekend. To buy them online, click here.

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