A genre-spanning lineup of musicians helped ‘weave the Sounds of the World’ at Southampton’s inaugural Tapestry Festival last weekend.
Produced by Southampton Forward and partnered with Solent University, the free festival was held at West Quay shopping centre and entertained the masses, whether they were walking past or attending the event. Erazer went down for the second day of Tapestry and caught some incredible performances, from 1920s blues to Northumbrian folk music.
Goblin Band were one of the big draws of the day, showcasing the traditional English folk tunes with concertinas, handheld drums, recorders and even a hurdy gurdy. Dressed the part, the band of four, who seemed to change instruments after each song, took it in turns to introduce hundreds-of-years-old songs.
Next up was Southampton-based musician and renowned Indian vocalist Pooja Angra, who has performed on prestigious platforms such as All India Radio, Indian National TV and BBC Asian Network.
With something completely different, 18-year-old Muireann Bradley brought her covers of 1920s and 1930s blues songs to the stage, performing tracks by Mississippi John Hurt and Elizabeth Cotten. Muireann has previously appeared on Jools Holland’s Hootenanny and flew into Southampton just for the Tapestry Festival.
Introducing each act onto to stage was BBC Radio 3’s Music Planet presenter Lopa Kothari, who has hosted stages at Glastonbury, WOMAD and Latitude Festival.
After an interactive session from YES! Creative Beats, the legendary kora player Seckou Keita, performed his set. Alongside a newly-formed band, Seckou spoke about the importance of supporting young, upcoming musicians.
Closing out the evening was Kathryn Tickell and The Darkening, who brought their Northumbrian folk sounds to Southampton as the sun set. With Kathryn on the Northumbrian smallpipes, the group had the audience dancing and singing along.
Organisers hope 2025 will mark the first of many editions of Tapestry Festival.
