LD Systems, Palmer and Gravity support SPH Bandcontest

The SPH Bandcontest is a competition which aims to promote young up-and-coming artists. The event is supported by the national music industry and corresponding associations. We are proud to be able to support this outstanding contest with prizes provided by LD Systems, Palmer and Gravity!

Since 2008, more than 200 students and musicians have been involved in organizing the contest. It now has more than 1,000 participating bands and 500 concerts per year, making it one of the largest junior competitions in Germany. It is held annually, with several selection rounds. These are held throughout approximately 70 cities in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

The philosophy of the founders and participants is a very particular one: The exploitation of artists must be stopped. Values and objectives that the contest stands for are, for example, helpfulness, sense of community and friendship.

To ensure transparency and accuracy of assessing contestants, they are judged in each round by the public and a panel of experts. The jury members come from labels, booking agencies, event operators and manufacturers, for example. This offers the artists the extra opportunity of expanding their networks.

Available to win are studio CD production sessions, graphic designs and music lyric videos in addition to coaching and opportunities to perform. Regardless of when they leave the contest, every band receives a sponsorship package with vouchers and free services to the value of €500. The total value of the prizes awarded is now approximately €50,000 and the organizers are constantly working to increase this. In this way, any profits generated are often diverted directly back into the bands, into enhancing the prizes and the competition, in live concerts or worthy clubs.

Applications for the SPH Bandcontest are available all year round and are always taken into account for the next preliminary-round concerts in the nearest town.

What does SPH actually stand for? This is what the organizers say:
"We like referring back to our beginnings because it goes back to this abbreviation. SPH originally stood for "Ska/Punk/Hardcore". These were the musical styles which we, or our founders, grew up with; they have shaped us and they initially represented the primary target group of our promotion project. Meanwhile, it has of course become much more than that: we have already opened up to all genres and styles of music. So now it's more of a brand name, if you like. We are happy to welcome any musicians of any age or genre as guests and participants."