Leader comment: Edinburgh needs to get its mojo back

'Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything.' This may have been misattributed to Plato but he was clearly a bit of a music fan.

DJ Vic Galloway and Roddy Woomble from Idlewild launch the first major exhibition on Scottish Pop Music 'Rip it Up' at the National Museum of Scotland. (Picture: SWNS)

Whether the ancient Greek philosopher would have plunged into the mosh pit for Nirvana’s famous 1991 gig at Edinburgh’s now defunct Calton Studios or stood outside complaining about the noise is open to question, but music is unquestionably an important part of any city’s cultural life.

While Glasgow has established itself as a significant presence on the UK scene, Edinburgh has lost “a little of its mojo” in recent years, according to broadcaster Vic Galloway, who blames booming property prices for squeezing out music venues.

People tend to like living in Edinburgh because of its quality of life – ranked second in the world by Deutsche Bank last year – and music venues are an important part of that. Scotland’s capital does need new housing but it takes more than places to live to make a city a home. In meeting the demand for residential property, we should take care not to lose some of the very things that make Edinburgh such an attractive place to live.