Published at 16:19, Friday, 02 November 2012

THE management team behind a Barrow-based not-for-profit music project were left astonished when hundreds of pounds’ worth of equipment turned up at their studio out of the blue.

The world’s most famous manufacturers of guitar amplifiers, Marshall, made the donation when Sonic Zoo appealed for help to kit out their new rehearsal room.

The Carlisle Street collective, which has recently been nominated for a Love Barrow Award, runs a number of community initiatives, with the aim of boosting the Furness area’s aspiring musicians and sound engineers.

Owner and producer Graham Newby said: “It’s a little bit overwhelming, and we never expected this much in our wildest dreams. We wrote to a number of companies for help, and Marshall got back to us straight away. We were maybe expecting a couple of little practice amps, but this much is just unbelievable.”

Marketing mentor Rob Dunphy added: “We need to raise a few thousand pounds for the rehearsal space, and this has gone a long, long way to covering what we need.

“They were aware of how we work with the local community, and were happy to help out - but this is above and beyond what we expected.”

For information on how to donate to the project, email rob@soniczoo.info or phone 01229 828663.

Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk