Manchester, UK?

Neal Pert

Silver Member
Hi, folks,

I'll be in Manchester, England from September through December-- my wife will be leading a study group at the University of Manchester, and I'm taking a leave from work and just sort of tagging along. Are any of you from the area? Can you make me any recommendations on how to get connected to musicians there? You can hear my drumming in the link in my signature. I'd love to hear great local musicians and have the opportunity to play and write music and all that. Any suggestions?

I'm also open to all the other usual recommendations-- good food, good venues, etc.
 
Well Manchester is a very Music oriented city, I'd move back there in a heartbeat if I could as I lived for 2 years in the area and still often visit. It's brilliant and has everything for the musician.

You'll find music in abundance there.

For finding other musicians you can't go wrong with heading out (especially in the Northern Quarter) and speaking to people.

I'd also recommend posting and keeping an eye on the classifieds in https://www.joinmyband.co.uk/classifieds/greater-manchester-f141.html in advance and also creating a profile on Bandmix.co.uk advertising yourself.

Some venues I love, all within the centre and a fairly short walk from each other. Lots of other venues to check out too

Night and Day Cafe
The Deaf Institute
Fac251
Gorilla
Band on The Wall
The Castle Hotel
Guilvers

General places to head out to (for music or just generally) The Northern Quarter, Canal Street, Chinatown.

I hope you and your wife have a fantastic time!!
 
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I live a half hour out of the city, and I second all of the recommendations above. You have to try hard to avoid music in Manchester tbh!

On a slightly different tack, if you have any interest in classical music check out the Bridgewater Hall, and the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) has lots of events of all styles.

Head out down Oxford Road into Rushholme for ethnic dining of all types, and to get out of the city for a quieter yet still lively evening try Didsbury.

I’m certain you’re going to have a great time.

:)
 
@Neal Pert I will second the Bridgewater Hall. It's an amazing modern concert hall.

If you're over in the UK - I'm assuming you're from across the pond - what you'll quickly realise is that it's not a big place at all and it's only a few hours and back to London. It's even closer to Liverpool (about an hour away) and you've got Birmingham another couple of hours away to the South. Then you've got York, etc. There's absolutely no reason why you couldn't day trip to any of them by train.

Great Britain isn't really much bigger than a good-sized US state and although we complain about the public transport endlessly, compared to my (limited) experience of the US, it's much better.
 
Thanks, all! The apartment we've gotten is near Sackville Park, just off Canal Street. I'm expecting this to be a huge switch from where we've lived for the last twenty years-- in a patch of woods in a rural area. But three cheers for adventure and for ear plugs.
 
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