SOUND SYSTEM CULTURE BOOK & FILM LAUNCH A FULLY functional time machine has been erected at the University of Huddersfield. Appropriately retro, with knobs, dials and switches, it is ready to transport visitors through the decades, to the years when the town was a famous centre for the culture of the sound system and reggae music, imported to the UK by West Indian immigrants. The Huddersfield area was once home to at least 30 of these mighty music machines and the University has partnered Lets Go Yorkshire, a local community organisation, in a major oral history project named Sound System Culture [soundsystemculturehuddersfield.tumblr/] The project is the brainchild of Mandeep Samra who developed the project after speaking with many local people with first-hand involvement in sound system. “I first had the idea but didn’t know where to begin. One day my boiler man, Michael Royal, revealed that he had been a sound operator for Duke Warrior, a Huddersfield-based sound system that had been active during the 1970s. The project began to evolve organically, and as needs arose it seemed that the perfect people to meet those needs became involved.” Funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, the project involves a team of volunteers and has resulted in a travelling photo exhibition and now an illustrated book and film, to be launched at the University on 9 April. With an Arts Council grant, a painstakingly reassembled example of a 60s/70s style sound system has been constructed from original components and has already toured carnivals throughout the north of England. Named Heritage HiFi, it is the creation of sound system builder Paul Huxtable, who developed a love of reggae in his teens. Preston-born, he settled in Huddersfield because of its sound system scene and he has paid many visits to the Caribbean to immerse himself in the culture. Heritage HiFi has now been installed at the University of Huddersfield’s Researcher Hub as a centrepiece for the Sound System Culture exhibition, which is open between 10 and 12 and 2 to 4 Monday to Friday. The Sound System it will be in action playing class reggae on Thursday, 27 March (5-6pm) and Thursday, April 3 (5-6pm). In addition to authentic reggae music, Heritage HiFi will also be used to spin specially created “dub plates”, which combine music with passages of oral reminiscences from people interviewed for the project. The launch of the Sound System Culture book and film takes place at the Researcher Hub on Wednesday, 9 April (5-7pm), as part of the University’s annual Research Festival. Professor Paul Ward, who is Head of History, English, Languages and Media and who has a speciality in the diversity of national identities in the UK and public history, was one of the partners in the co-produced Sound System Culture project. Paul was invited to participate in the project by Mandeep Samra, oral historian, researcher and artist, who led the project. Two PhD students, Jo Dyrlaga and Elizabeth Pente, were given the opportunity to contribute to the book by editing text and researching photos. Elizabeth is in the early stages of her PhD, dealing with aspects of public history, the co-production of historical knowledge and urban regeneration. She is from New Jersey in the USA and after a first degree in archaeology and geology she switched to history, relocating to the UK in 2013 after the offer of a PhD course supervised by Prof Ward. “At one time I worked in a national park in the USA and I really enjoyed inter-acting with the public,” she says. “I love engaging with people and public history is a way to move beyond the classroom. One of the reasons I think that the Sound System Culture exhibition is so great is that really has something for everyone - photography, music and the technological side.” Photo: Manchester Carnival 2013 Photo by Elliot Baxter
Posted on: Thu, 20 Mar 2014 18:51:09 +0000
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