Cultural York - 10 Things You Didn't Know...
York is:
1. Home to a cutting-edge international festival of digital arts
The SightSonic festival challenges the boundaries of our new digital world. Organised in association with Touch – a London-based, independent digital record label – the event includes concerts with digital artists, innovative performances, club nights and ‘meet the artists’ sessions.
2. Alive with music
The annual York Live Music Festival sees local artists take to the major venues, bars, stages and streets of York to perform an array of music showcasing the best in musical talent. The Spring Festival of New Music showcases national and international artists, including jazz and world music as well as contemporary classical.
3. A place to get closer to high quality artists
The much loved York Open Studios weekend, held every year, allows you to venture into the homes and studios of over forty of York’s top artists. See the variety of arts, ceramics, sculpture, jewellery and textiles on offer from internationally renowned artists, conveniently located within the compact city.
4. Showing the bright lights of Bollywood
The 2007 International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Weekend in June will see exciting events across York, Leeds, Bradford and Sheffield, including an Indian Film Festival at York’s art house cinema, City Screen. IIFA brings together the worlds of Indian and international cinema on one common global platform, reaching out to millions of viewers and fans across the world, for a festival to remember.
5. Home to the National Centre for Early Music
The award-winning centre is an established conference and recording venue which celebrates music spanning 500 years. It supports the renowned annual York Early Music Festival, a colourful celebration including concerts and illustrated talks, and offers a year-round music programme that attracts some of the world’s finest artists in the fields of jazz, folk and world music.
6. Somewhere to explore Lesbian Art
Celebrating lesbian art and artists including writing, music and film, the York Lesbian Arts Festival includes concerts, a club-night and workshops aimed at lesbians and bi-sexuals nationwide.
7. The scene for a unique ‘Illuminating York’ programme of events
Illuminating York is a ten-year project to light the city’s beautiful architecture at night. This includes the immense ‘Recovered Light’, an installation by three New York-based digital light artists (Shelley Eshkar, Marc Downie and Paul Kaiser) onto the Great East Window of York Minster, symbolising the city’s fusion of contemporary and historic culture.
8. Home to a world class British jazz weekend
Thirty of the brightest stars in rejuvenated, world class British jazz take over York Theatre Royal for two days for the York Dune Jazz Festival. Bringing together award-winning jazz stars such as Soweto Kinch, Zara MacFarlane and Jazz Jamaica, this promises to be a really spectacular event.
9. Host of the largest UK Festival of Food and Drink
For ten days food simply takes over as the city hosts an extravaganza of specialist markets, celebrity chef demonstrations, themed dinners, product launches and any number of special events. Yorkshire produce is always showcased and UK celebrities offer their support.
10 Home to the freakiest walking tours
With more city walls still in tact than anywhere else in England, two of the most photographed streets in the UK and a stunning selection of architecture, York provides a great setting for walking tours. Try the Historical Toilet Tour, Guy Fawkes Trail, or the Graveyard, Coffin and Plague tour for starters.