The History of music in Leicester
a series of articles by Trevor Locke
See below for links to the articles in this series.
Introduction
This series of articles traces the music that was heard and played in Leicester from contemporary times backwards. These articles are to be published in the magazine Arts in Leicester. The articles are concerned mainly with popular music; although classical music is not ignored, the focus is on the music of the people.
All music is a reflection of the time in which it was made; it is part of the community; it is a cultural manifestation of the values, preoccupations and tastes of the people in whose time it was performed. Hence, we have to describe the life and times of a period to fully understand its music.
The articles, therefore, annotate the life and times of the city of Leicester through the lens of its musical activities. It is both a contribution to local history and a timeline of the development of music.
My plan is to work backwards from the starting point of 2014. How far backwards? Well, in my original plan I go back to the time of the Romans; that being pretty much the start of written history. Anything before that period would require the results of archaeology because we would then be talking about pre-history, about which not a lot is known.
Articles already published
The music of today (2005 to 2014)
1990 to 2005
Part 1 – the noughties (2000 to 2005)
Part 2 – the 1990s music and the rise of the Internet (1990 to 2005)
Articles in preparation
The era of radio and records (1940 to 1990)
At some point in the future, my plan is to published a book about the history of music in Leicester. This will include a much fuller and more details account that the brief annotations in these articles.
My hope is that, by publishing brief articles, people will offer details and contributions to the final book.
See also:
Chapter 1 – Music in modern times
Chapter 2 – part 1 – The 2000s
Chapter 2 – part 2 – The 1990s
Music and technology
References (referred to in the articles)
[Pictures from the original article have been removed from this edition]