BLUEGRASS v The World at The Sage Gateshead is a concept event taking place on April 28 to attract new fans to acoustic music initially inspired by the music of Appalachia.

It has mixed roots which take in Irish, Scottish, Welsh and English traditional music developed to some degree by immigrants from England and Ireland who arrived in Appalachia in the 18th Century.

Their music was normally accompanied by a fiddle and, as it developed, other instruments, including banjo, guitar, mandolin, bass and dobro were added with modern cultural origins being credited to the US around the 1940s.

Originally known as old time mountain hillbilly music, it took its modern bluegrass name when festivals started in the 1960s and as the oldest man appearing (Bill Monroe) came from the Bluegrass State of Kentucky it took on the mantle of “Bluegrass”.

Organiser of the event at the Sage Gateshead is Paul Holdsworth, a banjo player and a third-year student at Sunderland University, who thought this event would not only give fellow enthusiasts a great night of music, but hopefully widen an audience appreciation to a younger demographic of fans.

North-East artists Big Red and The Grinners, The Lee Paul Band and many more will unite on stage to take on musical genres from all around the world which will cover everything from Michael Jackson to Eric Clapton, from Nirvana to Rihanna performed in bluegrass/country style.

Profits go to Community Music Degree course and will help future community music students who lead musical projects in society. Tickets from 0191-443-4661 or from sagegateshead.com