Guitar
A friend of my wife's passed on this article which is a pretty canny summary of the state of things for us working muso types. The comments section is equally enlightening. Check it out here:
http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/2012/02/why-music-venues-are-totally-lost-an-open-letter-from-a-professional-musician/
While I don't agree with everything that is said in the article, it does sum up some of my less pleasant recent business dealings. One thing is for sure: the price has been dropping in real terms (ie. against the cost of living) since the eighties. One hundred dollars a night was a benchmark price for a musician forever, regardless of inflation, and now we see budgets dropping ever further.
At the same time, my own career began doing show-cases and multi-band bills that paid nothing. Hell, in the punk scene of my youth, it was seen as a badge of honour to play for free, or at least basic touring expenses (this does leave a lot of wiggle room, depending on what the band's expenses entail).
Young musicians do need these opportunities to hone their craft, and too often those of us who are on the wrong side of recent history take great offence to these young players "stealing our gigs" or "lowering our pay", only to find ourselves sharing the stage with them a few years down the road.
And what of the larger economic trends? I was busy as hell up until the middle of 2011, when the whole world's banking system went to hell in a handbasket. I was working for a fairly successful restaurant at that time, and saw the long-term negative impact on that business. My musical services were the first thing to go when times got tight. Less business and vacation travel results in less business for bar and restaurant owners, and too often they turn to us looking for a quick fix for lost business.
Lots of ways of looking at this and few east answers. I highly doubt that this will turn around anytime soon. Things may get worse before they get better; most things do...
What are your thoughts?
- Reeve Guitars - Continued. . . . .
The next instalment from Val Reeve. Off we go again! After the excitement of the eighties, things began to quieten down and we settled into a routine of making instruments and also began to do a lot of repairs. ...
- Peavey T-60 And T-40 Cases, Part Ii. . . . .
I asked Chip a couple of questions - How did the moulded case design come about, in order to conclude this piece about the cases and just get get an insight into the musical side of him, what his musical experiences were and did they influence...
- Vintage Gibson Ga-50 Tube Combo In Los Angeles For $275
Non-working but ooooohh so rare Gibson from the old "coke bottle" tube days. This amp is at least 55+ years old and whatever is wrong with it can probably be fixed by a reasonable tech. As long as it isn't the transformers you are in good...
- Audio Wallpaper
The Wolf performs at the grocery store. This past Thursday I played a charity event at a high-end cooking store (the Gourmet Warehouse in Vancouver). It featured a few local celebrity chefs, a popular local news team, a number of...
- Welcome To Inspireformation
Hello musicians and music lovers. My name is Double D and it is my pleasure to welcome you to my little piece of the interweb. I have been a working musician for a couple of decades, performing and recording with scads of artists in...
Guitar
An Interesting Rant on the State of the Union
A friend of my wife's passed on this article which is a pretty canny summary of the state of things for us working muso types. The comments section is equally enlightening. Check it out here:
http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/2012/02/why-music-venues-are-totally-lost-an-open-letter-from-a-professional-musician/
While I don't agree with everything that is said in the article, it does sum up some of my less pleasant recent business dealings. One thing is for sure: the price has been dropping in real terms (ie. against the cost of living) since the eighties. One hundred dollars a night was a benchmark price for a musician forever, regardless of inflation, and now we see budgets dropping ever further.
At the same time, my own career began doing show-cases and multi-band bills that paid nothing. Hell, in the punk scene of my youth, it was seen as a badge of honour to play for free, or at least basic touring expenses (this does leave a lot of wiggle room, depending on what the band's expenses entail).
Young musicians do need these opportunities to hone their craft, and too often those of us who are on the wrong side of recent history take great offence to these young players "stealing our gigs" or "lowering our pay", only to find ourselves sharing the stage with them a few years down the road.
And what of the larger economic trends? I was busy as hell up until the middle of 2011, when the whole world's banking system went to hell in a handbasket. I was working for a fairly successful restaurant at that time, and saw the long-term negative impact on that business. My musical services were the first thing to go when times got tight. Less business and vacation travel results in less business for bar and restaurant owners, and too often they turn to us looking for a quick fix for lost business.
Lots of ways of looking at this and few east answers. I highly doubt that this will turn around anytime soon. Things may get worse before they get better; most things do...
What are your thoughts?
- Reeve Guitars - Continued. . . . .
The next instalment from Val Reeve. Off we go again! After the excitement of the eighties, things began to quieten down and we settled into a routine of making instruments and also began to do a lot of repairs. ...
- Peavey T-60 And T-40 Cases, Part Ii. . . . .
I asked Chip a couple of questions - How did the moulded case design come about, in order to conclude this piece about the cases and just get get an insight into the musical side of him, what his musical experiences were and did they influence...
- Vintage Gibson Ga-50 Tube Combo In Los Angeles For $275
Non-working but ooooohh so rare Gibson from the old "coke bottle" tube days. This amp is at least 55+ years old and whatever is wrong with it can probably be fixed by a reasonable tech. As long as it isn't the transformers you are in good...
- Audio Wallpaper
The Wolf performs at the grocery store. This past Thursday I played a charity event at a high-end cooking store (the Gourmet Warehouse in Vancouver). It featured a few local celebrity chefs, a popular local news team, a number of...
- Welcome To Inspireformation
Hello musicians and music lovers. My name is Double D and it is my pleasure to welcome you to my little piece of the interweb. I have been a working musician for a couple of decades, performing and recording with scads of artists in...