ISSUE #2

A f t e r a h u g e ly s u c c e s s f u l ‘ B i g B u s k 2 0 1 7 ’ t h i s e d i t i o n s e e ’ s u s c at c h u p
w i t h K a r e n H i g g i n s . . .
How did the idea of The Big Busk, rst
come about?
When Ben was killed we wanted to
achieve a couple of things, celebrate
his life, raise funds for the charity
that had supported him so much and
also demonstrate to the public that
just because a person has found
themselves on the street does not
mean they are not loved or valued,
Ben was very much both.
Because Ben's rst love was music and
poetry, a busking event seemed
perfect. It was actually a friend of our
who called it the Big Busk (and yes
she was being a little bit cheeky at
the time expecting people to
mispronounce it!)
What's your rst memory of
something related to The Big Busk?
When we put out the appeal on social
media for musicians to take part we
were unsure if anyone would but
within a few hours we had a phone
call from Beth Prior, we had never
heard of her then and had no idea just
how super talented she is. Beth set up
a musicians closed group and the
whole event just snowballed from
there.
Tell us about some of the people
you've met while working on the
Cause?
That's just impossible because it is a
massive community event and each
and every one of the people taking
part can take credit for making it
happen. But special moments are
when you see seasoned professional
musicians stood alongside very young
performers. The look of admiration on
the younger performers faces is
priceless and we know the level of
young talent means some of the
dreams to make music their life will
be realised.
What has surprised you most?
I suppose I always knew Shrewsbury
was a pretty special place so it doesn't
surprise me that a community can
make this happen but it is still
overwhelming.
What do you nd most challenging?
That’s easy, the paper work !!
The interest seems to be growing.
Why do you think that is? How has it
changed over the years?
It is a very inclusive event and I think
most of us like to feel we belong. The
Big Busk is open to everyone and that
word has got round.
What's it like to be a volunteer for The
Big Busk? And how can people
interested in any of these areas get in
touch?
I hope it is a lot of fun. People can get
involved at any level that suits them.
We do need more people on the
planning team as there is a lot of
preparation, although interested
people do need to be prepared for
quite a bit of commitment (but its
worth it)
MAY/JUNE SHROPROCKS.COM P5