History of Art School Live

Art School Live, a live music initiative, is hosted by the School of Digital Arts (SODA) at Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU). It brings live music to the Manchester School of Art campus, offering students industry-standard hybrid event experiences.

The project involves collaboration between technical staff and students, with curated line-ups and unique branding for each gig.

What began in 2019 as a modest performance in a classroom—with no audience, borrowed gear, and even a fire alarm—has grown into a fully funded, RISE-backed project.

After early shows at the Holden Gallery, featuring two-band bills and a physical audience, the project expanded its scope with more cameras, more people, and a growing community.

Despite the challenges of the pandemic, it evolved, adapted, and continued to thrive. To date, we've delivered 20 events, hosted 3 festivals, and showcased over 60 bands—turning a small experiment into a major platform for live music

CO-CREATED BY STAFF & STUDENTS

This project is a co-created initiative by staff and students at Manchester Metropolitan University, bringing together a wide range of creative and technical roles.

Working across Tech, Events, and Marketing, our collaborative team ensures every event runs smoothly—both in person and online.

The tech team brings together roles such as camera operators, directors of photography, sound engineers (for front of house, stage, and stream), lighting engineers, vision mixers, photographers, VT engineers, and runners—each ensuring a professional multi-platform broadcast.

The events team oversees the live experience, with event managers, site managers, stage managers, artist liaisons, and health & safety officers all working in sync to keep things running smoothly.

Meanwhile, the marketing team drives the project’s visual identity and public engagement, including roles like social media officers, artistic directors, graphic designers, branding officers, and video editors.

Together, this cross-disciplinary team showcases the power of collaboration in a live and digital events environment.

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