Tracks

17/07/2025

What a fabulous project and lovely event celebrating the winners! We were very happy to support brilliant local writers Pam Plumb and Ann Cuthbert in bringing together their Write On Track workshops and competition S&dr200 Hopetown Darlington

✍️ Ann Cuthbert and Pam Plumb run the Darlington based open mic for writers, Stop Write Hear, held first Thursday of every month at Friends’ Meeting House Skinnergate Darlington. So they know there are many talented writers in the local area. Wouldn’t it be a good idea, they thought, to run a writing competition linked to the Bicentenary of the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway?

Read more about Write on Track, which culminated with an awards ceremony here at Hopetown last Friday 👇
https://www.hopetowndarlington.co.uk/stories/write-on-track/

10/07/2025

Once again, we warm up for Last Train Home Festival this year with a cosy evening of live music at Hopetown Darlington on September 4th.
This year we feature the dreamy soundscapes of Sunflower Thieves, locally grown americana from North Riding, and folkish fusions from Phil Cox. It's always a beautiful evening, spent listening to chilled out tunes in a historic atmosphere.

More Info/Tickets: bit.ly/LTHExpress25

09/07/2025

Come down early and get some free music advice from this quality bunch before the festival kicks off 🥰🤩🎸🎤 Creative Darlington Darlington For Culture - the official site Tees Music Alliance

Find tickets for On Point On Tour @ Last Train Home showing at the The Forum Music Centre - Darlington, GB Saturday Sep 6, 9:30AM Tickets starting at £1.00

08/07/2025

We will be bringing the live music back to Pride Picnic this year! In celebration of the bicentennary of the passenger railways, this years event will take place at Hopetown Darlington on Sunday 10th August. The event will run 12pm-3pm and will feature three regional artists. Darlington’s own Jenna Louise Music, a powerhouse singer songwriter who has gained radio plays on Amazing Radio and BBC Music Introducing and debut album is available now.
Jenna will be followed by Bishop Auckland’s Freya Bentley, a singer-songwriter, producer and performance artist whose lyrical, idiosyncratic folk-infused ballads weave themes of love, identity and politics with a sharp turn of phrase and a sense of humour.
Headlining the afternoon is British-Italian singer-songwriter ’Avino. Cherie blends cinematic soul, gospel, hip-hop, and blue-eyed soul to create powerful music that champions resilience, self-worth, and emotional truth. Born in County Durham and raised between Italy and South London, her multicultural roots shine through in her sound. Cherie’s career has seen her receive BBC Introducing airplay,perform on such prestigious stages as the Royal Albert Hall and Ronnie Scotts Jazz Club, support Jessie J and receive early career support from Alicia Keys management.

FREE entry Darlington Pride Weekender Enjoy Darlington Darlington Borough Council Darlington For Culture - the official site Creative Darlington Railway200 S&dr200 &DR200

03/07/2025

What an absolutely amazing legacy NARC. Magazine will be leaving us with! Years of giving local artists the opportunity to appear in print, on their website or even be a cover star! Sharing the wide variety of creative goodness that goes on in our corner of the world and putting the North East music scene on the map. Thank you for your constant support for all of our Tracks projects, we are looking forward to what's coming next for the powerhouse that is and will be giving NARC mag a proper send off at their stage at Last Train Home Festival this Sept xx

30/06/2025

Music is for everyone! As well as organising our Last Train Home Festival Big Little Gigs and Hark!The Sound Of Stories library gigs, we also run various music community projects bringing music to lots of places in
Thanks to The National Lottery Community Fund for funding our Music Makes Memories project. We are taking musicians Liz Corney and Sarah Wilson into care homes in Darlington to run fun singalong sessions and write songs with residents featuring memories they've shared with us! We've been to The Gardens Ascot Care North East care home and have just begun our sessions at The Lawns Highgate Care :-)

📸 Rob Irish

27/06/2025

Holler Holler Holler!! Social media has gone a bit wonky recently so we are creating a Tracks newsletter list for you lovelies to sign up to. We solemnly promise to not share your details with anyone else and to only send you news of all of our musical goodness :-) Enjoy Darlington Creative Darlington Darlington For Culture - the official site The Forum Music Centre

We've recently realised that social media is rapidly decending into a bin fire so have decided to set up a newsletter to communicate with you good people. Sign up here to receive our newsletter which will tell you all about what events and other musical good stuff we have coming up across the region...

21/06/2025

Last night's Crossing the Tees Hark the Sound of Stories special was warm both in atmosphere and in temperature! Huge thanks to the loveliest audience who braved the heat to see the crew behind Passengers and Pioneers share music and poetry inspired by the S&DR and the people who built it 200 years ago and the people who ride it today. Emotive, funny and proud - we loved every minute of their set - Sam Slatcher Carmen Marcus Lizzie Lovejoy Illustration . They were supported by Phil Cox with his original and trad railways songs getting us off to a stomping start, with Julie Ashmore reading an extract from Edward Pease's diaries to set the scene.

It's been an honour to be part of this year's book festival - massive thanks to Darlington Libraries for inviting back in to turn the children's library into a wonderful music venue!

We'll be back with more Hark later this year - make sure you're following us on socials, or drop us a line to let us know you'd like to sign up to our newsletter to find out about them first!

16/06/2025

FIRST WAVE 🚂
Announcing the first batch of artist on board for this year's festival! Welcome Du Blonde, MARKETPLACEband, TV Death, DEAR TASH, DUPLA, Nadedja, LAWN CHAIR, Lovely Assistant, The Early Purple, Loren Heat, Robyn Errico, Perfect Chicken, CHAT, Staithe, Pearly Gates, Eternal Rin, Dinky Bossetti, and many more TBA

More info/Tickets: bit.ly/LTHFest25

13/06/2025

Tracks and Darlington Libraries present a gorgeous event as part of the Crossing The Tees festival next Friday, showcasing the train-history and passenger story inspired album Passengers & Pioneers, a project of original music and poetry inspired by the history of the Stockton & Darlington Railway
🎟 https://www.crossingthetees.org/whats_on/hark-the-sounds-of-stories-presents-passengers-and-pioneers/