Sunderland Music City awarded National Lottery Heritage Fund for ‘Mackem Music Memories’ to preserve the city’s musical history

Major new heritage project will celebrate, preserve and share the city’s rich musical history.

£156,166 has been awarded by the National Heritage Lottery Fund. This will be used to gather the stories of Mackems on their most memorable musical moments, to then be displayed in an exhibition at the newly opened Culture House Sunderland in the summer of 2027.

Sunderland Music City will document the people, places, performances and traditions that have shaped Sunderland’s musical identity. From the earliest recorded choral traditions on Wearside to the grassroots venues, musicians and audiences that continue to define the city today.

The project will run until December 2027, culminating in a major exhibition at Culture House, alongside a programme of community activity, live events, oral history recording, digital archiving and innovative musical heritage trails.

The National Lottery Heritage Fund investment will enable Sunderland Music City to gather more than 300 memories through questionnaires and community research, alongside 20 in-depth oral history interviews, capturing stories from people who witnessed legendary performances and lived through the city’s vibrant musical decades.

The project will also create opportunities for younger and older generations to work together, helping to pass musical memories and heritage skills between generations.

Mackem Music Memories will also ensure that Sunderland’s musical heritage reflects the city as it is today. The project will work with communities including South Asian, Filipino, Nigerian and Eastern European communities, as well as the city’s international student population, to document the musical traditions and experiences they have brought to Sunderland.

Research sessions will take place in everyday community settings including working men’s clubs, allotments, embroidery and knitting groups, record shops and community organisations.

The stories and material gathered during the project will form the basis of a major exhibition at Culture House, combining archive material with creative community responses.

But the project will not end when the exhibition closes. The exhibition and research will be digitised to professional archival standards and incorporated into the Sunderland Local Studies Collection, ensuring that the material becomes part of the city’s permanent historical record.

Michelle Daurat, CEO of Sunderland Music City, said:

“Sunderland’s musical heritage is written in its people. We are delighted that The National Lottery Heritage Fund is supporting us to capture those stories before they disappear and to make sure they become part of Sunderland’s permanent heritage.

This project is about much more than looking backwards. It is about understanding where our Music City came from, celebrating the people who made it what it is today, and inspiring the musicians and communities who will shape its future.”

Sunderland Music City want your anecdotes, memorabilia and voice to help shape this project. You can fill in the form on their website if you would like to contribute and be a part of the city’s musical story:
www.musiccity.uk/mackem

Funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fun