College of Science & Engineering

Dear Green Music Scene

Dr Graeme Hunt of the James Watt School of Engineering and Professor Matt Brennan of the School of Culture and Creative Arts collaborated on an inspiring public engagement project about sustainability in the music sector. The project featured a mobile, solar-powered stage and recording studio that engaged audiences at several events as well as the first sustainably powered Dear Green Music Scene festival at St Mungo Square in the summer of 2024. Activities were jointly funded by multiple Impact Acceleration Accounts (IAAs) at the University of Glasgow, GALLANT, and the Canada Council for the Arts.

The challenge

At the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in 2021, Glasgow set itself the ambitious target of reaching net zero by 2030. Reaching it will require transformational changes with community buy-in. Glasgow is also a UNESCO City of Music, which has identified creativity as a strategic factor for sustainable urban development. Can the music sector lead by example?

The response

Dr Graeme Hunt, Research Fellow in Systems Power & Energy, and Prof. Matt Brennan, Professor of Popular Music, developed a project to demonstrate the use of renewable energy at small music festivals, thereby creating awareness among festival goers of sustainable solutions in the music sector. The Dear Green Music Scene project was supported by the EPSRC, AHRC and ESRC IAAs as well as GALLANT at the University of Glasgow, alongside the Canada Council for the Arts.

Phonoautobothy

The Phonoautobothy, a mobile recording studio and festival stage powered by solar panels, was built from upcycled materials by delivery partner Idlefield Art Lab, a collective from Canada that produces opportunities for people to make sound in unusual spaces. The Phonoautobothy was part of six festivals and community partner events in Glasgow in the summer of 2024, reaching new audiences for the University’s public engagement activities. Powered by its solar panels, the vehicle offered people a free 20-minute slot to play, record a sample of music of their choice, and transfer the result to a cassette tape which could then be decorated and taken home. In addition, the Phonoautobothy also functioned as a completely autonomous festival stage hosting musical performances. An engineering stall complemented the vehicle, connecting attendees and audience members with researchers who led activities about sustainable energy.

Dear Green Music Scene

The second part of this project was a mini festival at St Mungo Square outside the Advanced Research Centre (ARC), as part of WestFest. Held on Saturday 15 June 2024, Dear Green Music Scene was completely powered by sustainable energy. The solar-powered Phonotautobothy functioned as one of the stages; the other stage was powered by hydrogen. By using renewable power sources instead of diesel generators, the festival saved the equivalent of 6.072 kg CO2 – representing a saving of 95%. Dear Green Music Scene was the largest public event ever held at the ARC and, for many participants, likely their first opportunity to see hydrogen-powered energy storage and large-scale batteries in action.

Festival headliners, The Burning Hell, performing on the Hydrogen Stage

Outcomes

An estimated 1,710 people engaged with the Phonoautobothy activities across the six events. Around 67% (1150) people had a direct conversation with the researchers involved. 65% had “never” or “rarely” had contact with researchers from the University of Glasgow before. The events led to a greater understanding and a positive change in attitude to alternative sources of energy.

Researchers gained new skills in public engagement and formed new partnerships with external organisations. Prof. Brennan said: “I think we are now in a much stronger, more experienced and knowledgeable position to design future public engagement projects.”

The Phonoautobothy was handed over to Beatroute Arts, a charity that provides inclusive arts and holistic community activities in Balornock, in the North East of Glasgow. It has been taken out of service, as it required expensive repairs to remain roadworthy. Its solar panels and music equipment will be installed in a retired Glasgow subway carriage, thereby continuing the Phonoautobothy’s mission as a community space demonstrating the use of renewable energy.

The Dear Green Music Scene festivals of 2025 and 2026 built on the success of the first event in 2024, demonstrating the feasibility of using sustainable energy sources to power festival stages and combining musical performances and public engagement.