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Oosterpoort rebrands as SPOT Groningen

The operator of the longtime home of Eurosonic Noorderslag has a new name which "fits in better with our mission"

By IQ on 21 Mar 2019

The SPOT Groningen team

The SPOT team


image © SPOT Groningen

De Oosterpoort and Stadsschouwburg Groningen (OPSB), the organisation behind Eurosonic Noorderslag (ESNS) venue De Oosterpoort, has a new name: SPOT Groningen.

The Oosterpoort in Groningen – which has been home to Dutch music industry conference ESNS (then called the Holland-Belgium Festival) since 1986 – merged with the Stadsschouwburg, a Groningen theatre, in 2002. The old name, says the former OPSB, “no longer does justice to who we are and what we stand for.”

“The new name fits in better with our mission: bringing the artist and the audience together to create an unforgettable experience,” says SPOT in a statement. “We no longer do this only in De Oosterpoort and the Stadsschouwburg, but also in other places in Groningen such as the Lutheran Church, the USVA, the horse racing track, EM2 and the Martini Church. Depending on the artist and the audience, we determine the place that fits best. In this way we create places of encounter and places of meaning.”

“The new name fits in better with our mission: bringing artist and audience together”

The 33rd edition of ESNS wrapped up on Saturday 19 January at the Oosterpoort in Groningen, Netherlands, having been attended by a total of 42,789 visitors, of which 4,135 were conference delegates.

Speakers included Fruzsina Szép of Lollapalooza Berlin, the Windish Agency founder Tom Windish, Cindy Castillo from Mad Cool Festival, Mojo’s Kim Bloem and Key Music Management’s Richard Jones, as well as Pinkpop director Jan Smeets, whose keynote interview focused on the 50-year history of the legendary Dutch festival.

Outside of the conference programme, highlights included the European Festival Awards and A Greener Festival Awards, as well as a total of 342 shows in 52 venues across the city.

Eurosonic returns to the Oosterpoort on 15–18 January 2020.

 


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