The Sound of Belfast festival returns for its fourth year aimed at showcasing the great local talent on offer in Northern Ireland. The programme for 2017 shows that we have an abundance of musical talent on our shores, that deserves a spotlight shone on it.
Between 2 and 11 November, Belfast will play host to a series of special gigs, conferences, and talent development sessions put together by the Oh Yeah Music Centre in partnership with a range of organisations including Belfast City Council, Blue Moon and the Arts Council.
As usual the programme highlight is the awarding of the Northern Ireland Music Prize for Best Album and also the presentation of Oh Yeah Legend Award this year to Vivian Campbell. For musicians and those working in the industry, an important event to attend would be the Help Musicians NI Industry Essentials which features talks from the Musicians’ Union, PRS and Complete Music Update as well as a free showcase gig featuring three artists on their current 3:3 funding programme.
In terms of straight up gigs, there are unmissable bills throughout the festival with performances from the likes of the Bonnevilles, Sister Ghost, Empty Lungs, Leah McFall, Vokxen and more. Sound of Belfast will also see the launch of Native Music Mart, a marketplace that only sells releases from local musicians which also features live performances and stands from other players in the music industry here.
The full programme for Sound of Belfast 2017 can be found here.
