Formerly a bank in an historic building on the town’s busy main Victoria Street, the premises was lovingly renovated and refurbished by the local community in 2019 into what is now acknowledged as being one of the best live music/performing arts venues in Scotland.
A ‘must-visit’ when in the region, the venue attracts the very best in UK and International bands and artists from all genres of music and the arts, which creates an exciting, varied, programme that has something for everyone.
Rock, folk, blues, jazz, classical, soul, dance, bluegrass, americana – music, spoken word, comedy, theatre, health and wellbeing, home and garden – the venue hosts a wide range of exciting and engaging events and activities throughout the year, suitable for all ages.
SpringGrass Bluegrass Festival is held in late May and features the very best in UK and International artists who both perform and teach at the event. A key feature of the festival is the jamming/picking sessions which take place throughout the weekend. Open to all ages and abilities, participation is actively encouraged and with the additional support of bluegrass workshops it’s the perfect opportunity to learn and develop your bluegrass musicianship with like-minded people as well as enjoying incredible entertainment at the evening concerts.
Newton Stewart & Minnigaff Traditional Music & Dance Festival is the charity’s flagship event attracting performing artists, piping and Highland dancing competitors and visitors from all over the world. Held over the second weekend in July the festival includes concerts, workshops, piping and Highland dancing competitions, tune and song sessions.
The event is rated highly among traditional music enthusiasts and within the traditional music industry and was a finalist in the ‘Event of the Year’ (Sponsored by VisitScotland) category at the national MG ALBA Scots Trad Music Awards in 2022 and will celebrate its 9th year in 2023.
Blues Weekender is a 2-day celebration of blues music held mid-September and features the best in UK and International blues bands and performing artists. A relatively new event, the inaugural festival proved very popular with enthusiasts, young and old alike, attending from all over the UK.
Autumn Trad celebrates young people in traditional music through concerts, workshops, tune and song sessions held over 2 days in late October. The event has consistently featured winners and finalists from the prestigious BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician of the Year competition. The future of traditional music is in very good hands and Autumn Trad offers a unique opportunity to see the traditional music stars of the future at the very early stages of their careers.
Run as a social enterprise project, supporting the aims of the charity which are to encourage, develop, support and promote traditional music, dance and language learning, composition and performance in Dumfries & Galloway, the income from ticket, bar and retail sales is directly re-invested back into the business to support running costs and to ensure the long-term sustainability of the venue and the charity.
The project has created vital full-time and part-time employment opportunities as well as continuing to support a huge number of performing artists and crew.