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The second annual Solar Rock concert drew more than 2,500 Tucsonans to Himmel Park last month.

The March 29 event was an effort to promote a global decrease in carbon emissions. It featured writers, artists, government officials and a host of local musicians, including the top three finalists from the Arizona Daily Star Battle of the Bands.

Groups played on a simple black platform under mammoth trees using amps, microphones and electric instruments powered entirely by the sun.

"The idea for Solar Rock is very inspiring," said local blues pianist Arthur Migliazza, a performer at the show. "It's great to realize that you can have a concert and not use electricity from a power plant."

The event ran for five hours without incident using energy collected by a solar-paneled trailer built specifically for the show. It represented on a local scale, the growing trend of musicians doing what they can to help save the planet.

Across the country, cities like Tucson have held music-based eco-celebrations, while major festivals and artists have made significant advances in going green.

Mega-concerts such as the Bonnaroo Music Festival, Lollapalooza and Vans Warped Tour have employed the use of solar-powered stages.

In 2007, Seattle's Bumbershoot began giving discounts to carpoolers and reserved an entire lot for people willing to ride their bikes to the big event.

And planners of Austin's South by Southwest music festival, which brings in nearly 2,000 bands annually, started purchasing renewable-energy credits last year to offset the energy used by their offices throughout the year, according to the Austin Chronicle.

Many of Tucson's larger festivals and venues have yet to jump on the "going green" bandwagon, but the desire for such events in town is growing.

Club Congress booker David Slutes said going solar is tricky for a historic venue like theirs, packaged in with a hotel, a cafe and other businesses. But they are examining the possibilities.

According to Slutes, the hotel plans to install solar panels to provide hot water for guests, and the landmark's biggest event this month, tonight's Eat Downtown food festival, will include the use of solar power.

"I am not only willing but extremely receptive to put on events like Solar Rock," Slutes said. "We do a lot of outdoor events, and I would gladly have that here."

Artists such as Migliazza are also excited at the prospect of seeing more green in the music scene. Migliazza considers himself "sensible" when it comes to the ecology. He recycles and carpools when he can. His dream is to get a small solar panel he could use to power his electronic keyboard at gigs.

"Solar power makes a lot of sense in the long run," Migliazza said. "But people who are short-sighted have a hard time seeing why it's better."

That's where Solar Rock comes in said Torey Ligon, one of the coordinators of the event.

"If a few people decide to get solar panels put on their houses or more people decide to ride their bikes or change out their light bulbs because of Solar Rock, then they have been worth it," Ligon said. "We aren't looking for every single person who attended this year to drastically shift their lives. But if a few people did do something, then we will have been successful."