South by Southwest (SXSW) has announced that their Music Gear Expo arena will return to the Austin Convention Center from Thursday, March 19 to Saturday, March 21 in Exhibit Hall 5. The Expo is a savvy addition to the phenomenal music, film and interactive conference.
Showcasing at SXSW for the first time, the John Lennon Educational Tour Bus (Lennon Bus) is the premier, non-profit mobile Pro-Audio and Video recording studio and production facility. The Lennon Bus will be located inside the SXSW Music Gear Expo as a featured stop on the 75th Anniversary Tour in celebration of what would have been John Lennon’s 75th birthday. During the Expo, the Lennon Bus will showcase the latest music and audio products, offer exclusive tours, demos and product giveaways as well as select artist sessions.
Synthesizer enthusiasts will be thrilled at the addition of the Synth Space, which features Novation and Korg, as well as other manufacturers. Another addition is the Music Gear Expo App Annex. This designated space within the Gear Expo is devoted solely to the world of digital music-creation and virtual instrument apps, allowing users to interface with everything from virtual guitars, keyboards and drums to mixing and DJ software.
Other top attractions include The Shred Shed Presented by Paul Reed Smith Guitars, which allows players to turn it up to “11” in an isolation booth stocked with PRS guitars and amps; and The Deli StompBox Exhibit. This interactive guitar pedal showcase gives attendees the ability to plug in and play hundreds of pedals from the industry’s top manufacturers such as Dunlop, Strymon, T-Rex, TC Electronic, Seymour Duncan, SolidGoldFx, Red Panda Lab, Mod Kits DIY, Darkglass Electronics and more.
Musicians will be able to have their guitars worked on by a professional onsite technician, purchase strings, drum heads and any other last minute performance needs from the Gear Expo Store by Strait Music.
Exhibitors at this year’s Music Gear Expo include Sweetwater Studios, Bohemian Guitars, Wunder Audio, Taylor Guitars, Propellerhead, Telefunken, Hammond, Hungate Cases, Square Amps and more. The Expo, now in it’s sixth year, is open from from 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with the SXSW Music Conference – or “South By” – it’s a six-day event held every March in Austin. The conference offers unmatched access to ideas, new music, global influences and thought leaders, and attracts a more sophisticated industry crowd. It aims to educate and inspire musicians and professionals alike, with sessions attended by 28,000 registrants and showcasing artists. A large multi-industry trade show exhibition, Music Gear Expo and daytime stage performances round out the day while evenings are devoted to the SXSW Music Festival, which showcases nearly 2000 acts ranging from the unsigned to the iconic. The 2015 event takes place March 17 – 22 2015.
