The Music Show was an annual event which took place in the RDS,

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

on the first weekend of October each year. The event combined live performances, music workshops and talks given by professionals within the music industry. It had several high-profile sponsors, including ''

Hot Press ''Hot Press'' is a monthly music and politics magazine based in Dublin, Ireland, founded in June 1977. The magazine has been edited since its inception by Niall Stokes. History ''Hot Press'' was founded in June 1977 by Niall Stokes, who cont ...

'',

RTÉ 2fm RTÉ 2fm, or 2FM as it is more commonly referred to, is an Irish radio station operated by RTÉ. The station specialises in current popular music and chart hits and is the second national radio station in Ireland. History The station commenc ...

, the ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray backgrou ...

'' and the '' Sunday Independent''. RTÉ 2fm provided live radio coverage of the event. The 2009 event was the largest music event ever staged in Ireland.

History

2008 event

The 2008 event took place on 4–5 October. There were performances throughout the weekend from

The Blizzards The Blizzards are an Irish band from Mullingar in County Westmeath. They were formed by Niall Breslin in late 2004, and also feature Dec Murphy (drums), Justin Ryan, Anthony Doran, Louize Carroll (bass) and Aidan Lynch (keyboards). They have ...

The Coronas The Coronas are an Irish rock band that originated in Dublin. They release their music by their own independent record label, 3ú Records, and are based between Dublin and London. They have released seven studio albums, '' Heroes or Ghosts'' ...

Cathy Davey Catherine Davey (born 1979) is an Irish singer-songwriter. She has released one extended play, "Come Over" (2004), and four albums, '' Something Ilk'' (2004), '' Tales of Silversleeve'' (2007), '' The Nameless'' (2010) and ''New Forest'' (2016) ...

Damien Dempsey Damien Dempsey (born 9 June 1975) is an Irish singer and songwriter who mixes traditional Irish folk contemporary lyrics that deliver social and political commentaries on Irish society. Damien sings in his native, working-class accent in the Eng ...

Ham Sandwich A ham sandwich is a common type of sandwich. Ham sandwich may also refer to: * Ham Sandwich (band), an Irish indie rock band * Ham Sandwich (song), "Ham Sandwich" (song), by Getter, 2019 * "Ham Sandwich", a 1963 short story by James H. Schmitz * ...

, Dispatches,

Declan O'Rourke Declan O'Rourke (born April 26, 1976) is a singer-songwriter from Kinvara, Ireland. Career Early career to 2010 At the age of 13, when living in Australia with his family, O'Rourke was given his first guitar by a priest in Kyabram who recog ...

Fionn Regan Fionn Regan (born 1981) is an Irish folk musician and singer-songwriter. Born and raised in Bray, Regan came to prominence with the release of his debut studio album, '' The End of History'' in 2006. He had been releasing extended plays for si ...

and

Republic of Loose Republic of Loose were an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 2001, the band formerly consisted of lead vocalist Mick Pyro, bassist and vocalist Benjamin Loose, keyboardist Deco, guitarists and vocalists Dave Pyro and Brez, and drummer Coz ...

. The Coronas were "mobbed by crowds of fans" according to Colin Bartley in the ''

'', and had to be assisted in leaving the event.

Mike Terrana Mike Terrana (born January 21, 1960) is an American hard rock and heavy metal drummer. Career His first professional work was in 1984, with the MCA band Hanover Fist from Toronto, Canada. Between 1987 and 1997, he was based in Los Angeles a ...

performed solo on the drums. An award for Live Music Venue of the Year was presented to

Vicar Street Vicar Street is a concert, performing arts centre and events venue in Dublin, Ireland. Located at Thomas Street, Dublin 8, Vicar Street has capacity for 1,050 people for seated performances and 1,500 people for standing gigs. The venue is ow ...

, believed by ''Hot Press'' readers to be most deserving, whilst

Cork "Cork" or "CORK" may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Stopper (plug), or "cork", a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container *** Wine cork an item to seal or reseal wine Places Ireland * ...

's Cypress Avenue and

Mullingar Mullingar ( ; ) is the county town of County Westmeath in Ireland. It is the third most populous town in the Midland Region, Ireland, Midland Region, with a population of 22,667 in the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census. The Counties of M ...

The Stables The Stables (also known as the Stables Theatre) is a music venue situated in Wavendon, a small village in south-east Milton Keynes. The Stables hosts over 400 concerts and around 250 education events a year including the National Youth Music ...

were also given consolation prizes. A panel discussion on the topic "Songs Should Have Some Bloody Meaning!" featured contributions from

Sharon Corr Sharon Helga Corr (born 24 March 1970), is an Irish singer-songwriter, musician, and television personality. She is best known as a member of the pop-rock band the Corrs, which she co-founded in 1990 with her elder brother Jim and younger sist ...

Ronan Hardiman Ronan Hardiman (born 19 May 1961) is an Irish composer, famous for his soundtracks to Michael Flatley's dance shows '' Lord of the Dance'', '' Feet of Flames'' and '' Celtic Tiger Live''. Early life Hardiman was born in Dublin on 19 May 1961. ...

Dave Odlum David Odlum is an Irish music producer, engineer, guitarist, and drummer who has worked and played with Academy Award winners and Mercury Prize nominees. Originally a member of Kíla, a band which was founded during his schooldays at Coláiste Eo ...

and

Mick Pyro Michael Tierney, better known as Mick Pyro, is an Irish musician. He is best known as the frontman of the Dublin funk rock band Republic of Loose. He has also participated in other independent work with Irish and international musicians. He has a ...

, with hundreds of people being refused entry such was its popularity. Other attendees included

Julie Feeney Julie Feeney is a singer-songwriter, composer, actress, and record producer from Galway, Ireland. She produces and orchestrates her own work, composing both instrumental and electronic music, with full orchestrations. She is a three-time nomin ...

and

Neil Jordan Neil Patrick Jordan (born 25 February 1950) is an Irish filmmaker and writer. He first achieved recognition for his short story collection, ''Night in Tunisia (short story collection), Night in Tunisia,'' which won the Guardian Fiction Prize in ...

2009 event

The 2009 event took place on 3–4 October. It was launched on 26 August by

The Script The Script are an Irish Soft rock, soft-rock band formed in 2001 in Dublin. The band currently consists of Danny O'Donoghue (lead vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards), Glen Power (drums, percussion, backing vocals), Benjamin Seargent (bass, backin ...

in Westin Hotel, Dublin. Irish Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism

Martin Cullen Martin Cullen (born 2 November 1954) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism from 2008 to 2010, Minister for Social and Family Affairs from 2007 to 2008, Minister for Transport from 2004 ...

commented "the popularity of all kinds of music produced in this country also has a very positive impact in promoting Ireland as a tourist location and enhancing further the reputation of our country's creative endeavours", saying "The Music Show provides a contemporary showcase to display all that is great about music in Ireland". The 2009 event featured the global premiere of some new musical equipment, such as the

iPad The iPad is a brand of tablet computers developed and marketed by Apple Inc., Apple that run the company's mobile operating systems iOS and later iPadOS. The IPad (1st generation), first-generation iPad was introduced on January 27, 2010. ...

touchscreen and the MA amplifier. Some guitars owned by

Rory Gallagher William Rory Gallagher ( ; 2 March 1948 – 14 June 1995) was an Irish musician, singer, and songwriter. Regarded as "Ireland's first rock star", he is known for his virtuosic style of guitar playing and live performances. He has sometim ...

were on show throughout the weekend. Performers included

The Chapters The Chapters are a six-nine piece band from Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The band are composed of Ross McNally, Michael Murphy, Ciaran Fortune, NC Lawlor, Aoife Ruth and Biggles Flys Again. Additional string, brass and guest players join ...

Delorentos Delorentos are a Dublin-based Irish alternative rock band, formed in 2005. They consist of Rónan Yourell (vocals, guitar, piano), Kieran McGuinness (vocals, guitar), Níal Conlan (bass, backing vocals) and Ross McCormick (drums, backing vocals) ...

Director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

David Kitt David Kitt (born 1975) is an Irish musician. He has released eight studio albums to date: ''Small Moments'', ''The Big Romance'', ''Square 1'', ''The Black and Red Notebook'', ''Not Fade Away (David Kitt album), Not Fade Away'', ''The Nightsaver ...

Imelda May Imelda Mary Higham (; born 10 July 1974), professionally known as Imelda May, is an Irish singer, songwriter, television presenter and multi-instrumentalist. She is known for her musical style of rockabilly revival and has also been compared to ...

and Villagers. Interviewees included

Glen Hansard Glen James Hansard (born 21 April 1970) is an Irish singer-songwriter and musician. Since 1990, he has been the frontman of the Irish rock band The Frames, with whom he has released six studio albums, four of which have charted in the top ten o ...

and

Christy Moore Christopher Andrew "Christy" Moore (born 7 May 1945) is an Irish folk singer, songwriter and guitarist. He was one of the founding members of the bands Planxty and Moving Hearts and has had significant success as a solo artist. His first albu ...

. Other professionals to attend include Nick Angel,

David Arnold David Arnold (born 23 January 1962) is an English film composer whose credits include scoring five James Bond films (1997-2008), as well as ''Stargate'' (1994), ''Independence Day'' (1996), ''Godzilla'' (1998), '' Shaft'' (2000), '' 2 Fast 2 F ...

Jim Kerr James Kerr (born 9 July 1959) is a Scottish musician and lead singer of the rock band Simple Minds. Commercially successful singles released by Simple Minds include " Don't You (Forget About Me)", " Glittering Prize" (1982), " Someone Somewh ...

, MayKay,

Nick Seymour Nicholas More Seymour (born 9 December 1958) is an Australian musician and record producer. He is the founding bass guitarist and a mainstay of the rock group Crowded House, and is the younger brother of Mark Seymour, singer-songwriter-guitaris ...

Jim Sheridan Jim Sheridan (born 6 February 1949) is an Irish people, Irish playwright and filmmaker. Between 1989 and 1993, Sheridan directed three critically acclaimed films set in Ireland, ''My Left Foot'' (1989), ''The Field (1990 film), The Field'' (19 ...

and

Liberty Global Liberty Global Ltd. is a British-Dutch-American multinational telecommunications company domiciled in Bermuda, with headquarters in London, Amsterdam and Denver. Its respective legal names are Liberty Global Holdings Limited (UK), Liberty Glo ...

Vice-president Shane O'Neill.

Camille O'Sullivan Camille O'Sullivan is an Irish singer, musician, and actress. She is known for her unique, dramatic musical style and Cover version, covers of artists such as Radiohead, Tom Waits, David Bowie, Nick Cave, Sinéad O'Connor, and Shane MacGowan, S ...

criticised television talent shows, saying those who participate are "being treated like guinea pigs" and that "somebody wins and has a hit and everybody gets bored with them after two months".

Theo Dorgan Theo Dorgan is an Irish poet, writer and lecturer, translator, librettist and documentary screenwriter. He lives in Dublin. Life Dorgan was born in Cork in 1953 being the second child born into a family of eight boys and eight girls to par ...

criticised An Bord Snip on their "fucking arrogance", saying that "a 12-year-old retarded child on speed wouldn't come up with this nonsense". MayKay was also announced to DJ at an "After Dark" showcase to follow the first day of the main event.

2010 event

The 2010 event took place on 2–3 October. It featured, among other things, the premiere of the music promo for ''

Killing Bono ''Killing Bono'' is a 2011 comedy film directed by Nick Hamm, based on Neil McCormick's memoir ''Killing Bono: I Was Bono's Doppelgänger'' (2003). The film stars Ben Barnes as Neil McCormick, Robert Sheehan as Ivan McCormick and Martin McCa ...

'', a discussion on the state of broadcasting, and

Andy Gill Andrew James Dalrymple Gill (1 January 1956 – 1 February 2020) was an English musician and record producer. He was the lead guitarist for the rock band Gang of Four, which he co-founded in 1976. Gill was known for his angular, jagged style of ...

talk on music and technology, songwriting tips from Brian Kennedy and

Andy Cairns Therapy? are a Northern Irish rock band from Larne, formed in 1989 by guitarist-vocalist Andy Cairns and drummer-vocalist Fyfe Ewing. Therapy? recorded their first demo with Cairns filling in on bass guitar. To complete the lineup, the band ...

Therapy? Therapy? are a Northern Irish rock band from Larne, formed in 1989 by guitarist-vocalist Andy Cairns and drummer-vocalist Fyfe Ewing. Therapy? recorded their first demo with Cairns filling in on bass guitar. To complete the lineup, the band ...

, a debate between the music industry and the government, calls for an improvement in funding, and a discussion on "The Crisis in Music".

References

External links

Official site
* ''