Introducing Side Of Stage, a weekly column where we will bring you the latest in music industry news from around Australia and abroad.
Music Victoria hits 1500 members
A solid campaign which featured a very tongue in cheek video featuring many members of the Melbourne music community has lead to the highest membership yet for this amazing industry body. Any individuals who are involved in the music scene, whether musicians or industry personnel should absolutely look into a membership with Music Victoria, an organisation which champions Victorian music, provides education and industry guidelines as well as working on projects such as Good Music Neighbours. Or maybe you just want to support an organisation who comes up with the genius that is The Usual Suspects:
Vivid hosts Feedback: a music conference for young people
Sydney’s Vivid Festival of Light, Music and Ideas combines two of these for an event specifically focussed at young musicians between 12-24 who want to learn about the music industry. This one day event will take place on the 12 June at The Museum of Contemporary Art. It will teach young musicians about the different aspects of the industry from how to get gigs, to building a fanbase, to finding a manager. The event will also feature a keynote with Hermitude and a whole session devoted to engaging with triple j.
For more information see the website.
Moshtix and Music SA create a new scholarship for women in the industry
In a move to increase the visibility and engagement of women working in the industry Music SA and moshtix have teamed up to help fund dedicated women to complete Certificate IV in Music Business at St Paul’s Creative Centre. The scholarship which will open for applications in September 2017 and was announced at The Cultural Shift, a Music SA workshop in Adelaide on 21 April. Harley Evans, CEO and owner of moshtix, asserted that “it’s a fantastic initiative to help increase the presence of women in the music industry and to give them real-world experiences.”
See the website for more details.
Splendour gives back to the local community
Splendour In The Grass, which floods the Northern NSW Coast with revellers from across the country every year has announced a bold move to give back to the area. Cyclone Debbie which inflicted a well documented carnage upon several areas in Queensland also had a devastating impact on local NSW communities. Most notably with the floods in nearby Lismore that saw the worst flooding there in decades. The SITG Flood Relief Fund will auction 50 Gold Passes next week with all proceeds going to local flood relief organisations. These passes which not only give you entry to the festival but access to VIP bars and sidestage viewing, are sure to not last long. Get on it here.
BIGSOUND opens applications and early bird delegates registrations
BIGSOUND, the annual contemporary music conference and festival in Brisbane, is open for artist applications. Any musician who showcases at this event can expect to be seen by many influential figures in the local and international music industry from managers, publicists, and record label executives to festival bookers. This year BIGSOUND also announced their visual artist program where artists can apply to set up public art around Fortitude Valley or to be involved with the design team of the festival. Attendees to the conference can now register for early bird entry before May 14 and festival revellers will be able to buy tickets for the music only from June. Check it out here.
Spotify announces Spotify Students in Australia…finally
Despite students in the US receiving a half price premium membership since 2014, full time students in Australia have been paying the full amount for access to more music than they could ever want. As of last week that has all changed however as Spotify announced that they will now offer students in Australia the 50% discount. The price of Spotify Premium in Australia is a substantially smaller portion of the average hourly wage here ($11.99 of $17.70 per hour) than that in the US ($9.99 of $10.09 per hour) but as any full time student can attest to, an extra $6 is not to be sniffed at. That’s the going rate for two flat whites after all.
