Wearing badges is not enough (reprise)

Wearing badges is not enough

I've always loved badges. Along with event tickets, see my other blog tickets of distinction  for some of these, and records, I guess I have been a bit of a collector. I've recently become the proud owner of three more badges, displayed opposite.
The first reflects the Music Minds Matter project, predicated upon the excellent Can Music Make you Sick study produced by my colleagues at Westminster. A fine piece of work and a fine project.
The second relates to a project I am involved with, Lost in Music, which was launched last month at Westminster Law School. This is a free, open access, resource that hopes to help people navigate the maze of the music industry and we are currently seeking funding to develop this further. The third, rather than  reference to The Smiths' How Soon is Now alludes in fact to the British Academy/AHRC Being Human Festival which takes place this week. There are lots of fabulous events taking place, one of which I might add, somewhat immodestly, is one of ours.

Matt Morrison introduces visitors to the Soho Poly

Yesterday was the first day of our Lost and Found: Disrupting the Everyday series of events. This was sold out and a fabulous event, with Fred Proud, the original artistic director of the space and the poet and our Writer in Residence Mike Garry giving excellent performances. This will followed by a viewing of various materials from the archives and some beautiful, previously unseen, Nobby Clark photos and the premiere of a piece of digital theatre commissioned for the space. More here on this.  As I write this (tuesday morning) there are still spaces for some of the days, and you can even pick up a badge. I've previously written in a different context of how wearing badges is not enough, a phrase I lifted from Billy Bragg's Days Like These. Please take this as a clarion call. Come along and visit the Soho Poly, either this week or in one of our future ventures (follow Matt's excellent blog here for more details), go on to the Lost in Music resource and post a comment or question  and help us make this a vibrant, active space, and support in any way you can, the Music Minds Matter initiative. Because wearing badges is not enough, in days like these.