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Legends of Rock ‘n Roll at the British Music Experience

The British Music Experience has announced that it will be hosting two exhibitions this November which pay tribute to some of rock n roll’s greatest living legends: Bob Dylan and The Rolling Stones.

Bob Dylan

The Dylan exhibition, entitled ‘Daniel Kramer: Photographs of Bob Dylan’ documents Bob Dylan’s metamorphosis from folk musician to rock-n-roll icon through the photography of noted American film director and photographer Daniel Kramer.

Curated by the Los Angeles-based GRAMMY Museum, the exhibition features more than 50 of Kramer’s photographs from his time with Bob Dylan on tour in 1964 and 1965. This photographic "backstage view” of the singer-songwriter — frail, almost androgynous, with a determined look in his eye — showcases key moments in Dylan’s musical career during one of the most dynamic periods in American history.

Rolling Stone magazine called Kramer ‘the photographer most associated with Dylan’ and these seminal pictures of Dylan show why, setting a standard by which all other rock portraits would be judged.

Curator of the British Music Experience Paul Lilley said; ‘I’m delighted to be hosting this exhibition. Through Kramer’s photographs we see Dylan, folk music and a generation undergoing a transformation. It represents a kind of ‘coming of age’ for a new generation, a new articulation for the youth of America at that time.’

Daniel Kramer: Photographs of Bob Dylan will be at the British Music Experience from Monday 12 November 2012 to 3 February 2013.

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The Rolling Stones

In addition to the Dylan exhibition, the British Music Experience joins The Rolling Stones, in celebrating 50 years of iconic sounds though this exhibition entitled ‘Rip This Joint: The Rolling Stones 1972. Photographs by Jim Marshall.’

Curated by Dave Brolan, this series of the late Jim Marshall’s portraits of the band during their monumental 1972 tour allows visitors a rare glimpse into life on the road. Marshall, who died in March 2010 at 74, was given unprecedented access to The Rolling Stones and is widely celebrated as a pioneer of music photography.

This collection captures both photographer and band at the height of their powers. The 1972 tour, notorious for its wild parties, groupies and media circus, marked the moment that The Rolling Stones were crowned the greatest rock ‘n roll band ever. From intimate shots of the band in the studio, to unbelievable glimpses of the backstage parties and iconic onstage images, this exhibition is packed with never-before-seen material and offers a sterling look at one of the most inspirational bands of all time.

Of this previously unseen work, Lilley says; ‘Marshall’s pictures perfectly capture the hedonism of the greatest rock ‘n roll band in history at the height of their majesty, pushing into new musical, cultural and commercial territory. The 1972 tour set the benchmark for the juggernaut rock tours of the 70’s.’

Rip This Joint: The Rolling Stones 1972. Photographs by Jim Marshall will be at the British Music Experience from 12 November 2012 to 3 February 2013.

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The BME

Using state of the art effects and iconic memorabilia the British Music Experience shows how rock, pop, dance and other genres were formed and have influenced the last sixty years of British culture.

From the classic era defining sounds of The Beatles, Rolling Stones and Dusty Springfield... to stadium filling giants like The Who and Queen... to the irresistible anarchy of bands like The Specials and the Sex Pistols... right up to recent crowd-pleasers such as Spice Girls, Oasis, Coldplay, Radiohead, Arctic Monkeys and more.

Along your journey you can step into interactive audio visual spaces that explore great British music moments throughout history, you can witness fascinating one-off interviews between the biggest stars, see an awe inspiring display of famous artefacts, record yourself singing, mixing, playing guitar, keyboard or drums and bust your moves as you Dance the Decades and feel the adrenaline rush of performing to to a massive crowd.

EDGE ZONES
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Travel through time in each of these extraordinary "Edge Zones".

Explore the musical history of Britain from 1945 to the present day in seven fully interactive rooms that will keep you tied up for hours as you find out more about the key cultural and musical movements of the past 65 years.

Each of the rooms is filled to the brim with original musical memorabilia including handwritten lyrics, iconic clothing, instruments and other fantastic - and priceless - items from the likes of the Beatles, Queen, Rolling Stones, Black Sabbath, David Bowie, the Sex Pistols and many more besides.

In addition there are interactive audio and visual spaces within each of the rooms to keep you coming back for more.

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THE CORE
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The central area in the BME is home to a handful of exhibits that take a look at how the UK has consumed music over the past 70 years including:

Playback - This interactive explores the way people have played music since 1945. It looks at the formats that have stored sound, from shellac discs to digital files, and the devices that they have been played on.

Transmission - This interactive explores the music broadcasts people have listened to or watched since 1945 and the new and original ways in which music has been transmitted. With continuing developments in webcasting and mobile phone technology, who knows how music will be broadcast in the future?

Where It's At! - With thousands of locations to choose from across Britain, find out about specific places and the events that happened there. With facts including birth places, venues, festivals and pop oddities, this interactive will give British music a place in time.

Hey DJ! - Hey DJ! is the ultimate fantasy record box, flick through this virtual collection of classic 12" records and Zeitgeist artists

The Beat Goes On - Have you imagined being in the thick of the crowd for those "I was there" classic performances from yesteryear? The thrilling 5 minute visual and sonic montage of life-size-scenes from the best concerts and acts from the last 60 years features the likes of The Stones, Bowie, Led Zeppelin, Oasis, Radiohead, The Clash and more, ranging from the intensity of intimate gigs to spine tingling euphoria of massive stadium concerts and festivals.

THE GIBSON INTERACTIVE STUDIO
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The Gibson Interactive Studio is a fully integrated and exciting addition within the BME offering visitors an opportunity to play on various guitars from the Gibson family, Slingerland drums and Baldwin digital pianos, a mixing desk and even a vocal booth sponsored by Sennheiser to add to the experience.

Visitors will be given step-by-step video tuition from artists such as KT Tunstall, Blur, Amy McDonald and the Magic Numbers with content supplied by award-winning website Nowplayit.com.

Simply follow the instructions on the touch screen and you wil be able to access lessons on each of these instruments. If you can master the Beginner and Intermediate levels, you can then try a Pro tutorial. This includes the real recording artists who will guide you through exactly how they play their songs.

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