When the beloved British pop group Duran Duran requested to play a day before Musikfest was scheduled to begin this August, ArtsQuest Senior Vice President of Programming Patrick Brogan welcomed the opportunity to accommodate the band.

Duran Duran played 15 years ago at a sold-out show at the RiverPlace venue on Sand Island, then the Musikfest main stage. The Sands Steel Stage has a capacity of about 6,600 and tickets have been selling fast for the 8:30 p.m. Aug. 6 concert. It will be the first time that a Musikfest main stage is used for a "Preview Night" of music. Gates open at 6:30 p.m.

Duran Duran is best known for its hits "Hungry Like the Wolf" (1982), "The Reflex" (1984) "The Wild Boys" (1984) and "A View to a Kill" (1985).

By 1980, Duran Duran was already a success in Europe. The band took the name from a character in the science-fiction film, "Barbarella" (1968). The character, played by Milo O'Shea, is Dr. Durand Durand.

Duran Duran was formed in Birmingham, England, in 1978, by keyboardist Nick Rhodes and bassist John Taylor. Their stylish videos were a perfect match for the arrival of MTV in the early 1980s, leading to the "Second British Invasion." Duran Duran inspired the "New Wave" sound of '80s rock. They were the teen heartthrobs of those years.

Since the 1980s, Duran Duran has placed 21 singles in the Billboard Hot 100 and sold more than 120 million records. The group's visual presentation in videos and concerts has always been elegant and stylish. The band members are handsome and photogenic.

Australian film director Russell Mulcahy made 11 videos for the band. Most were in exotic locations like Sri Lanka and Antigua. Mulcahy used video equipment usually reserved for making films. The results were stunning and glamorous. He directed the band's videos "Rio" and "Hungry Like The Wolf," which offered alluring scenery, beautiful women and a plot. The Duran Duran videos "Hungry Like The Wolf" and "Girls On Film" (Kevin Godley- Lol Crème, directors) won the Grammy Award for Best Video, Short Form in 1984.

On the Sands Steel Stage, Duran Duran will take us back to those MTV days with what is expected to be a concert of their wonderful hits and new songs from the most recent album "Paper Gods," set for release Sept. 6. It's the group's 14th studio album. A preview of one of the new songs, "Pressure Off," is on the band's web site.

The album includes contributions from former Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist John Frusciante, Chic guitarist Nile Rodgers and vocals by Janelle Monáe, Kiesza and Lindsay Lohan.

The Duran Duran tour began Aug. 1 with a two-night stand at the Capitol Theatre, Port Arthur, N.Y., and after Musikfest, continues, among other stops, in Spain, at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre and The Hollywood Bowl and in the United Kingdom.