Glasgow will today be named as one of the world's leading cities of music by the cultural wing of the United Nations.

Glasgow will today be named as one of the world's leading cities of music by the cultural wing of the United Nations.

A campaign to recognise the city's long musical heritage and vibrant modern musical scene, backed by figures such as the composer Craig Armstrong, the violinist Nicola Benedetti and Alex Kapranos of Franz Ferdinand, will be officially declared a success by the director general of Unesco, Koichiro Matsuura.

The city will now join Unesco's list of culturally distinguished cities, known as the Creative Cities Network. Scotland is the only country in the world to have two such designated cities, as Edinburgh has been a City of Literature since 2004.

Music generates an estimated £75m to Glasgow's economy every year, and now the team behind the bid hope to build on that thriving scene even further.

Today the successful bid for the title will be celebrated at Glasgow City Halls in an event attended by Councillor Robert Winter, the Lord Provost, Culture Minister Linda Fabiani and the chair of the bid's committee, Baroness Ramsay of Cartvale.

Yesterday Mr Matsuura, who has been in Scotland for a short visit, said: "My two-day visit to Scotland has allowed me to see at first hand Scotland's commitment to safeguarding and promoting its traditional and contemporary cultural expressions.

"Announcing Glasgow's appointment to the Creative Cities Network is the perfect way to end my visit and the beginning of what I am sure will be a very rich and fruitful partnership."

Ms Fabiani, who was part of the delegation that delivered the bid in Paris on June 3, and which has The Herald as its media partner, said: "This is a historic accomplishment for Glasgow, highlighting the renowned musical talent and appreciation that exists in this city. This signals to a worldwide audience that Glasgow is a centre for cultural excellence and I am sure the many musicians, venues and music lovers here will take this opportunity to enliven and diversify the music scene even further.

"The Scottish Government has been fully supportive of this bid and I welcome its success as we build towards the Year of Homecoming 2009 ensuring a true celebration of Scottish culture on the international stage."

The city had presented a formidable case to Unesco - the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation - as it is home to the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Scottish Opera, the BBC's Scottish Symphony Orchestra, a rich tradition of rock and pop music, leading music venues and concert halls, Celtic Connections and hundreds of other events every year.

From the opening of the City Halls in 1841 and the founding of the city's choral union, through the dominance of the music hall era, continuing with the contribution of Sir Alexander Gibson, renowned conductor of the RSNO and founder of Scottish Opera, through the emergence of many Scottish rock bands and the folk and traditional music revival, the city's love affair with music was writ large in the bid document.

The document stated that, in an average week, 127 musical events take place in the city. These range from piano recitals to DJ club sets, major rock gigs in venues such as Barrowland or King Tut's, classical performances at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall and the City Halls, and amateur choirs entertaining their friends and families in community halls.

It also found that 123 rock and pop bands are based in the city, as well as 44 folk bands, nearly 80 classical music composers and arrangers, 27 singer-songwriters and hundreds of people who enjoy singing in the city's 49 choirs or playing in the city's 38 orchestras.

In all, according to the bid document, 2922 people are estimated to be employed in the music sector in the city.

Baroness Ramsay added: "This bid was created with the support and encouragement of the City of Glasgow and owes its realisation to individuals in the community whose pride and passion for Glasgow's music was their motivation.

"It is immensely satisfying for all those who freely and generously gave their time and effort to witness this outcome and to look forward to the future of Glasgow City of Music."

The bid's backers included Glasgow City Council, BBC Scotland, the city's universities and the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama.

The city of music designation is seen by its organisers as an opportunity to achieve a number of objectives, including stimulating interest in musical education, improving access to music and promoting excellence.

Europe currently has two designated cities of music - Bologna in Italy and Seville in Spain.