The Ulster Hall is a concert hall and grade B1 listed building in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Situated on Bedford Street in Belfast city centre, the hall hosts concerts, classical recitals, craft fairs and political party conferences. Despite the opening of larger concert halls in the city, such as the Waterfront Hall and the Odyssey, the Ulster Hall has remained a very popular venue, and is considered to evoke much more atmosphere than the newer venues.^{[citation needed]}

Built in 1859 and opened in 1862, the hall's purpose was to provide the expanding city of Belfast with a multi-purpose venue of sufficient size. It was designed by William J. Barre (also responsible for the Albert Clock) for the Ulster Hall Company.

On its opening night on 12 May 1862, the hall was described by the local press as:

"stand[ing] unexcelled, and all but unrivalled, as an edifice for the production of musical works... the hall is a great and unmingled success, and the public, no less than the proprietors, may feel the utmost gratification at a result at once so pleasant and so rare." (The Belfast News Letter, 1862)

Ulster (Irish: Ulaidh or Cúige Uladh, Ulster Scots: Ulstèr or Ulster) is one of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the north of the island. In ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" Irish: rí ruirech. In modern times, clusters of counties have been attributed to certain provinces but these clusters have no legal status. The province itself, while enjoying common usage and forming a strong part of local identity, has no official function for local government purposes.

Ulster is composed of nine counties. Six of these (almost 57% of the land area) make up Northern Ireland: Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Londonderry and Tyrone. The three remaining counties (about 43% of the land area) are in the Republic of Ireland: Cavan, Donegal and Monaghan.

The name Ulster derives from the Irish Cúige Uladh (IPA: [ˈkuːɟ ˈʌlˠu, ˈʌlˠi]) meaning "The fifth of Uladh", a reference to the five regions into which ancient Ireland was divided. In the English language, the first part of the name ("Ul")refers to the Ulaidh tribes inhabiting this northernmost region. The latter part of the name ("ster") derives either from the Irish tír or the Old Norse staðr, both of which translate as "land" or "territory".

Carl Cox (born 29 July 1962, Barbados) is a British techno and house music DJ and producer.

Cox grew up in Oldham, Lancashire, before attending Glastonbury High Boys secondary modern school on Glastonbury Road in Morden.^{[citation needed]} Cox began his career as a hardcore and rave DJ in the mid 1980s. One of the first gigs he played was in legendary promoters John Binton and Terry Onion's Squeeze my buttered Onions! club in Hackney, London Unconfirmed reports suggest he was coerced into swallowing an onion on stage, one of Terry's famous requests he gave to his acts. He was named the "Three Deck Wizard" after playing on three turntables simultaneously at the Second Summer of Love in 1988.^{[citation needed]} He has performed at clubs such as The Eclipse, Edge, Shelly's, Sterns Nightclub, Heaven, Sir Henry's in Cork, Ireland and Angels and The Haçienda, as well as raves for Fantazia, Dreamscape, and Amnesia House. He now spearheads two record labels, Intec Records and 23rd Century Records. He also has his own stage every year at Ultra Music Festival called Carl Cox and Friends.

Richard Stephen "Richie" Sambora (born July 11, 1959) is an American rock guitarist, producer, musician, singer, and songwriter who is the longtime lead guitarist of the rock band, Bon Jovi. He and frontman Jon Bon Jovi form the primary songwriting unit of the band. He has also released two solo albums: Stranger in This Town in 1991, and Undiscovered Soul in 1998.

Sambora was born in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, the son of Joan, a secretary, and Adam, a factory foreman. Sambora is of Polish and Italian descent and was raised Catholic. He grew up in Woodbridge, New Jersey and attended Woodbridge High School there, graduating in 1977. He began playing the guitar at the age of 12 following the death of guitar legend Jimi Hendrix in 1970. From his early days Sambora was strongly influenced by blues and 60s rock 'n' roll. His most important influences were Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Jeff Beck, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Johnny Winter, Jimmy Page, Joe Perry, Joe Kmiecik, and George Harrison. He was also influenced by Spanish classical music and began a life long love of the Spanish guitar. Furthermore, he has stated that psychedelic soul singer Janis Joplin crept into his heart very early in the late 60s and early 70s, having a big influence on his musical style. Classical music directly inspired several of his songs, such as The Answer which was originally written on piano.

John Digweed (born John Digweed on 1 January 1967 in Hastings, England) is an English DJ, record producer and actor.

John Digweed began DJing at age 15.^{[citation needed]} His breakthrough came in 1993 when he got a gig at the Renaissance Club in Mansfield after fellow DJ Alexander Coe (aka Sasha) heard his demo.

Digweed is known for promoting the progressive house sound that became popular in Europe and North America in the late 1990s and early 2000s, releasing several popular mix compilations on labels like Renaissance and Global Underground. He started the record label Bedrock Records to further promote the music he was playing at the time. In addition to starting the Bedrock imprint, he and friend Nick Muir produce under the Bedrock alias. In his sets, Digweed is noted^{[citation needed]} for adopting tracks with new and different styles.

Between 2000 and 2005, John Digweed promoted his "Bedrock" sound with monthly club nights for members and newcomers to the electronic music scene. He played Thursday nights at Heaven in London and Friday nights at a smaller club night at The Beach in Brighton. These nights featured numerous guest DJs including Danny Howells, Phil Thompson, Hernan Cattaneo, and Chris Fortier. As Digweed's international schedule increased, these events drew to a close, although occasional reunions are still held at Heaven. Digweed celebrated 10 years of his Bedrock club night at Matter, London on 10 October 2008 with a near on 10-hour set.