Haçienda Classical is headed back to Blackpool

This August bank holiday, Haçienda Classical will return to Blackpool.

The acclaimed orchestral clubbing series will be headlining Blackpool Cricket Club’s Sound on the Ground, accompanied by Manchester Camerata and other special guests.

The date will mark the collective’s first live show in the UK for almost two years.

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The all-day event will also feature live performances and DJ sets from Haçienda contemporaries K Klass, Peter Hook, Bez and Tom Wainwright. Legendary Detroit group Inner City, of ‘Big Fun’ fame, and Jocelyn Brown (‘Somebody Else’s Guy’) are also billed to play.

Meanwhile, award-winning street food will be served to attendees on the site.

Now entering its sixth year, Haçienda Classical has performed to audiences of over half a million, with more tuning into its successful streams last year. Dedicated to celebrating the Manchester institution’s formidable impact on dance music from the 1980s onwards, the orchestra has opened Glastonbury’s Pyramid Stage, performed at the Royal Albert Hall and featured on many festival line-ups.

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As usual, the team will include orchestral renditions of much loved classic club records from the Haçienda’s heritage, whilst bringing new arrangements of seminal tracks to the crowd.

A leading figure in the venue during its heyday and beyond, Graeme Park said: “After a year of frustration, I’m excited that Haçienda Classical is back to thrill the nation with positivity and love. I’ve never been more ready to return to the stage with the whole crew to share the joy with some big new songs as well as some massive favourites too. I’m pretty sure the country is ready to share the love too.”

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Conductor and former violinist Tim Crooks added: “I’ve spent the past year thinking how incredible the post-lockdown gigs will feel, and the long wait is finally over. I can’t wait to feel the noise and see that pent-up energy explode. It’s going to be something very, very special.”

Safi Bugel is Mixmag's Digital Intern, follow her on Twitter