London – It will be music to the ears of many – buskers who know only three tunes will be politely urged to move on after finishing their repertoire under a new code of conduct published in the UK capital on Monday.
Bagpipe players will also be discouraged, as they create sounds that “can become annoying more quickly”, along with anyone playing highly amplified guitars or drums, or beatboxing.
Meanwhile buskers who cannot wheel a piano around themselves and their audience at rush hour will be advised that they are probably taking up too much room on the street.
The code has been issued by Mayor of London Boris Johnson, who warned last year that increasingly strict regulations imposed by the capital’s 32 borough councils risked creating “no-go areas” for street musicians.
Drawn up in consultation with police and musicians, the guidelines are intended to provide a way of resolving disputes between buskers and local authorities.
“Busking adds to the capital’s joie de vivre, but in spite of its popularity, buskers have sometimes encountered problems when plying their trade. Some have even been put off,” Johnson said.
“Working with our partners, we are putting a scythe through the acres of unnecessary bureaucracy to make it easier to entertain on our city’s streets. We want to make London the busking capital of the world!”
Performers are free to busk on any public land, although some of the best hotspots – including Underground stations – are private property, and subject to licensing conditions.
Buskers in Camden Market are also required to have a licence, while street performers are not allowed at all in the City of London, where St Paul’s Cathedral is located.
A new website, buskinlondon.com, outlines where and when buskers can perform – and how they could have their instruments seized if they break the rules.
AFP