When the Musicians Union recently needed a young band to perform, they came straight to London’s Institute of Contemporary Music Performance!

At the annual event which was organized by the GFTU, of which the MU are members, the main focus of the evening was encouraging young people to join the union, and what better way to reinforce this message than hiring a young band to supply the evening’s entertainment. 

The band, who played a mix of original and cover material, all met at the Institute last year whilst they were studying on the Higher Diploma course. Since graduating, three of the band (Ed Broad, Hugh Richards and Alberto Danelli) have progressed onto the Institute’s Degree programme, whilst percussionist David Nind has landed a job as a Musical Director and can be found gigging regularly.

Vocalist and guitar player, Caspar Riis, has taken a different tack and joined the Institute’s Administration team!  As well as organising many of the Institute’s external gigs and events, he also finds time to teach and gig as both a soloist and with his band.

Of course the band was paid for their services, but an unexpected bonus at the end was the presentation of a year’s free membership to the MU for each band member! Caspar Riis commented “The dinner was an excellent opportunity for us and we all thoroughly enjoyed playing, and of course the year’s MU membership was a real bonus! Our thanks go to everyone involved. Being a musician is a fantastic and rewarding career but you are joining a very complex industry. Being in the union and benefiting from the wide range of help and support they offer is a very wise move indeed!”

It seems the performance was also a big hit with the organisers, as Doug Nicholls commented to the Institute. “Thanks for all your help, the event was a great success with great musicians. Everyone was very taken with them.”