Shrewsbury hosts one of its biggest Open Mic Nights for pupils

Sunday evening saw the first Open Mic Night of this year which attracted one of the biggest crowds ever seen for this event. 

Director of Music, Maria McKenzie, said: "Part of my vision over the next year or two is to develop the popular music opportunities at school and what better way to start than with a very successful Open Mic night on Sunday! It was amazing to welcome such a large and appreciative audience to the Quod, what a spectacular sight! I definitely back Laurie; we are going to need a new venue! 

Laurie M (Rb, UVI) who performed at the Open Mic night, added: "The first open mic night of this year turned out to be the biggest the school has seen in recent years. The occasion had previously acted as an obscure event, only gathering the keenest and most niche of Shrewsbury’s performers, and only their friends and a few staff members resembling a small audience.

"However, due to increased advertising from posters, designed by Ethan P (I, UVI) and an email survey regarding student interest in contemporary/popular music, the setlist grew dramatically with fourteen acts in total. However, the bigger change was the size of last Sunday’s audience. Multiple house groups spanning from Third Form to the Upper Sixth were arriving, to the point where we had to acquire more seating. Songs were met with both large outbursts of cheer and audience participation (including clapping, phone torch shining etc.).

"Last Sunday showcased artists as diverse as ABBA, David Bowie, Bobby Timmons, Bo Burnham, Cyndi Lauper, The Police and even a jazzy rendition of Radiohead. The night was capped off with two separate bands: my wannabe rockstar burnout band and Ethan’s smoky bar smooth jazz quintet. With plans and song ideas already in the air for February 5^th (the second Open Mic of the year), the buzz from the other night is clearly still lingering and Ethan and I cannot wait to start lugging all the heavy gear around again in February!

"The word of mouth will likely be strong for the next one, so to paraphrase Roy Schieder, “you’re gonna need a bigger venue”."