London, UK, 09 May 2022 – On 21 June 2022, communities up and down the UK will take part in the annual celebration of Make Music Day, an international day of music-making consisting of thousands of inspiring events. To commemorate the occasion, musicians will extol the magic of music by contributing and sharing their own live performances, both in-person and online.
This year, festival organisers have collaborated with music publisher Hal Leonard Europe to create a playlist of feel-good songs to celebrate the joy many groups around the country feel about being able to make music together again following the disruption of COVID.
To aid musicians in playing and singing along with the celebration, Make Music Day and Hal Leonard Europe have partnered with Sheet Music Direct and its popular PASS sheet music streaming service, to offer free unlimited sheet music to musicians and music groups for 60 days – including all songs from the specially curated Make Music Day Playlist.
The Make Music Day Playlist features a whopping 16 pop songs, tunes from the movies, and favorites from musical theatre, from the Beatles and the Beach Boys to The Jungle Book and Rent. Previous Make Music Day Anthems ‘Bring Me Sunshine’ and ‘Stand By Me’ are also featured, alongside pop classics from ABBA, Queen, Elton John and Katrina and the Waves.
Music groups from across the UK are encouraged to perform music from the playlist on the day, and make video recordings of their performances to share online. Sheet music for all featured songs is available free via the Sheet Music Direct partnership at https://www.sheetmusicdirect.com/go/make-music-day-sheet-music.
“We are absolutely thrilled to have such a fantastic playlist of songs for Make Music Day this year. The list is full of truly uplifting, joyous music that will be accessible to musicians of any level of expertise. It’s been such a difficult time for music makers over the last couple of years, and we feel that this playlist really captures the joy and excitement that so many of us feel at being back together again.”
Rob Guest, Co-Director, Make Music Day UK
“Make Music Day is an important initiative for the UK’s music sector and society as a whole. It provides a unique occasion for people across the UK to join others in 125 countries, to celebrate the joys and benefits of music-making, regardless of age, background and geographical location. As the best global provider of tools and resources for learning, teaching, creating and making music, we are delighted to support Make Music Day in 2022 and beyond.”
Tom Farncombe, Business Development Director, Hal Leonard Europe
The Make Music Day UK and Hal Leonard Europe team are also running a competition for the best cover version of one of the songs, the Bill Withers classic ‘Lean On Me’. So, whatever your favourite style of music, you can create your own cover version and share it on 21 June. To enter the competition, just share your performance on social media on 21 June and tag @MakeMusicDayUK on social media and use the hashtag #MMDLeanOnMe so that we can find your performance. The winner will be selected by a panel of judges and win £150 of Musicroom vouchers!
About Make Music Day:
Make Music Day is a free celebration of music around the world on 21 June. Completely different from a typical music festival, MMD is a open to anyone who wants to take part. Thousands of amateur musicians play in public spaces and professional musicians perform for new audiences. And everyone is invited to sing along and enjoy the first day of summer. Today, MMD is observed on the same day in more than 120 countries around the world. It is the world’s largest annual music event.
Make Music Day UK is currently supported by an alliance of over fifty organisations, including Making Music, Arts Council England, Creative Scotland, Hal Leonard Europe, and the NAMM Foundation. Make Music Day UK is part of the international Make Music Alliance.
For more information about the Make Music Day Playlist and how to get involved, visit www.makemusicday.co.uk
PRESS CONTACT:
Lea Herrscher, Hal Leonard Europe
lherrscher@halleonardeurope.com
The full playlist:
The Bare Necessities (from Disney’s The Jungle Book) – Terry Gilkyson
Bring Me Sunshine – Arthur Kent & Sylvia Dee
Count On Me – Bruno Mars
Don’t Stop Me Now – Queen
Good Vibrations – The Beach Boys
Happy – Pharrell Williams
Here Comes the Sun -– The Beatles
I Sing Because I’m Happy – Rollo Dilworth
I’m Still Standing – Elton John
Lean On Me – Bill Withers
Lovely Day – Bill Withers
Mr Blue Sky – ELO
Seasons Of Love (from Rent) – Jonathan Larson
Stand By Me – Ben E. King
Thank You For the Music – ABBA
Walking on Sunshine – Katrina and the Waves
Sheet music available online at:
https://www.sheetmusicdirect.com/go/make-music-day-sheet-music
Sheet Music Direct 60 Days of unlimited sheet music via PASS offer:
https://www.sheetmusicdirect.com/makemusicday