Echo Salford

'Echo Salford' is Salford’s first interactive trail that celebrates the incredible legacy of the city’s music and cultural footprint is set for release, with special appearances from some regional royalty.

Made possible through The National Lottery Heritage Fund, thanks to money raised by National Lottery players, Echo Salford is an exciting new augmented reality (AR) experience that takes users across the places and spaces of Salford’s iconic musical and cultural history.

Starting at MediaCity and taking in Salford Lads Club, Islington Mill, Maxwell Hall and ending at the infamous Kings Arms, the trail will take people on a mind-opening visual and audio journey that aims to inspire and educate.

Accessed via the Echo Salford app, the trail enables users to launch an AR experience at each location, view never-before-seen images, create musical content and other digital takeaways, and downloadable memorabilia.

From exploring the Edwardian elegance and Smith’s room at the Salford Lads Club, with history spanning over 100 years, to immersing yourself in the artistic epicentre of Islington Mill which is creating a new wave of artists and creators, to getting lyrical and submitting a poem in the style of the wondrous John Cooper Clarke at The Lowry – which he’ll also personally review and award prizes to – Echo Salford is also a celebration of the diversity and inclusion that runs through the city.

And if that’s not enough to get you hooked, you’ll even be able to enjoy the dulcet tones and supporting commentary of some local and national treasures, including Peter Hook, Maxine Peake, and John Cooper Clarke, as well as the next generation of incredible talent from the city such as Priya Matharu and Cheddar Gorgeous.

Working alongside cultural partners, the University of Salford, and other city stakeholders, Echo Salford is sharing, uncovering, and restoring heritage content, supporting new and future music in Salford, and providing career opportunities for both students and early-stage professionals as they start their media production careers.

Echo Salford is a collaboration between Dig Media and Toasted Productions, who are both based at MediaCity and came together through the destination’s innovation community. For the history-fanatics, Dig Media is also the owner of a vast archive of video and visual art created by the prolific filmmaker and social documenter Jack Henry Moore across the 60s, 70s and 80s, which can be viewed on the Dig Media website.

Download the Echo Salford app from the Apple App Store or Google Play.