Performers set to sing the blues

0:00am Fri Aug 28, 2009

The first Newark Blues Festival starts on Friday, September 11.

The three-day event will feature more than 100 musicians performing at bars and restaurants, and on the festival’s main stage in the castle grounds.

The Blues At The Castle concert on the Saturday evening will involve Newark bands, Stormy Monday, Tim Wilson and The Unusual Suspects, before King King featuring Alan Nimmo and the Oli Brown Band take centre stage.

Fans will not only see established artists, they can also listen to new younger acts who will perform in the afternoon.

A free workshop in the castle grounds (on the Saturday afternoon) will enable young fans to learn about the blues genre and its influence on many of today’s musicians.

The not-for-profit festival is being organised by local music enthusiasts in association with concert producer Liz Hobbs, the chief executive officer of the Newark-based Liz Hobbs Group Ltd.

Liz Hobbs said: “We are delighted to be providing full production for the main event at Newark Castle. The castle ruins provide a stunning backdrop and our creative team will use lighting to set the mood for the blues.

“Having produced the Newark on Water Festival for several years, we have been keen to bring festival-style music back to the town.

“We have had a great response already to what is not only Newark’s first Blues Festival, but also the first of its kind in the East Midlands.

“We hope this will be the first of many live music events that will bring visitors to Newark.”

There will be eight venues — Ann et Vin, the castle, Crown and Mitre, Fox and Crown, The Mayze, The Malt Shovel, Navigation Waterfront and The Wheatsheaf.

Participation in the workshops and entry to the afternoon performance in the castle grounds are free.