Band Aid academics launch fundraising campaign live on radio
Song-writing academics from the University of St Andrews will appear live on national radio today (Tuesday 16 June 2009) to kick-start a fundraising campaign for students in need.
The group of seven lecturers, who perform under the name Dry Island Buffalo Jump, have written a song about the credit crunch in aid of student scholarships. With 18 degrees between them – the band consists of four historians, a French linguist, a Divinity scholar and a poet – they have already been dubbed ‘the brainiest band in Britain’.
The band’s appearance on Radio Scotland’s arts programme The Radio Cafe will mark the first national airplay of The Credit Crunch Song. It is hoped that the appearance will raise awareness for the fund, which has already raised almost £1000 by word of mouth alone.
The folk-rock band, formed as a ‘music-making collective’ for academics across the University, will donate all proceeds from the song, plus live performance fees to a newly established fund for St Andrews’ students.
The song, inspired by the current financial crisis, was written by the band’s singer and founder member, English lecturer, Dr Chris Jones.
Dr Jones, who will talk about the initiative live on air today, said, “In these straitened economic times, more and more students are going to find it hard to get the money together to go to university. We wanted to do something that would help out students from less privileged backgrounds to come and study at St Andrews. It’s our way of giving something back, as we’ve obviously all benefitted from higher education ourselves.”
It will be the band’s second appearance on Radio Scotland – late last year they performed a range of original songs and chatted live. Later this month, the band will perform to the class of 2009 at Graduation Ball.
Current members include Dr Jones’s colleagues at the St Andrews Institute of Mediaeval Studies; Dr James Palmer, Professor Chris Given-Wilson, Dr Simon MacLean and Dr Norman Reid, Dr David Evans from the Department of French and Dr Gavin Hopps from the School of Divinity.
The Credit Crunch Song by Dry Island Buffalo Jump is available to download online at http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/dibj, with a minimum suggested donation of £1.
ENDS
NOTE TO PICTURE / NEW MEDIA EDITORS: IMAGES OF THE BAND IN ST ANDREWS ARE AVAILABLE FROM THE PRESS OFFICE – CONTACTS BELOW.
SOUND AND VIDEO CLIPS ARE ALSO AVAILABLE FROM THE PRESS OFFICE. THE VIDEO WAS SHOT BY ST ANDREWS STUDENT JAMES SHIELD.
Issued by the Press Office, University of St Andrews. Contact Gayle Cook, Senior Press Officer on 01334 467227 / 462529, mobile 07900 050 103, or email [email protected]
Ref: Band Aid on air 150609
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Category Fundraising