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Winter NAMM 2005

Winter NAMM 2005

Back in another lifetime, when I was editing a magazine for working musicians, NAMM was the biggest, baddest show of the year and I spent all four days literally running from appointment to appointment trying to cover everything, along with a handful of trusted freelancers. But since leaving the music mag world for FOH, I have often found myself wondering why we bother. This time around the answer is (apologies to David Byrne) the same as it ever was. While NAMM may be a big loud guitar show, there are always some real live event audio gems buried in the rubble–this time around we didn't even have to dig too deep. Even those companies with little to show at NAMM promised big news at NSCA in March.

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Going Once, Going Twice…

Recently I had the honor of being asked to participate as a seminar panelist at Pro Production 2005. The invitation arrived via an e-mail from Kevin Mitchell, who is a seminar coordinator, and it began:

Dear Baker,

On behalf of Pro Production 2005, I'd like to invite you to be a panelist on one of the 90-minute seminars "Bidding Strategies: How to Get the Gig," at this year's event in February. It's an incredibly important topic…

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Beyond the Sea with Rico, Jimmy and Bubbles

What started as simply a promotional gimmick for a new movie turned into something much more, to the obvious joy of everyone involved, from the performers to the sound guys and the soundco, which may just end up with a new long-term client. We are talking about the 10-city tour mounted to promote Beyond the Sea, the new Bobby Darin biopic written by, directed by and starring Kevin Spacey. Traveling with FOH and MON engineers and a production manager with an audio background, the tour carried no production besides mics, personal monitors and a small rack of processing gear. Even many of the musicians were picked up in each town, with just the core rhythm section and two backup singers along for the entire ride.

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Q&A with FOH Engineer Steve Taylor

For four years straight, FOH engineer Steve Taylor has been on the road. He started off in 2000 as FOH engineer for Jimmy Eat World, then, while the band took time out to go into the studio, Steve headed straight onto FOH for Mars Volta. Fueled by the fact that both bands have the same management, he has lived out of a suitcase for 1,460 days in a row! He answered some questions while on the current Jimmy Eat World show in Canada.

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High End, Mixed Use and Over 55

Everybody knows South Florida is a great place to retire–or at least a great place to spend the winter. But it may surprise those not in the know to learn that, besides warm weather, low taxes, early-bird dinners and great golf, there are some other pretty nice perks of "Gold Coast" retirement living. Such as regional theatre in some very cool venues. One of the classiest of those venues is the Palace Theatre for the Performing Arts, part of the Kings Point condominium complex in Tamarac, Fla. Situated between Miami and Palm Beach, Tamarac is a town of just more than 56,000 that's been voted one of the most livable cities in the country by the U.S. Council of Mayors. The Kings Point condominium complex, which opened in 1989, is a community of 8,000 over-55 residents. Designed for active adults, amenities include a lavish country club setting and greenbelt trails. It's a sweet setup, and, with the baby boomer retirement explosion on the way, it just might be the wave of the future.

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One Good Turn…

Performers sometimes expect FOH people to perform virtual miracles in the way of responding to the most vague requests–and I've rarely encountered a sound guy who isn't able, and willing, to do so. But it doesn't hurt to try and make the harried technician's job a little easier, especially when the working situation is

particularly stressful and muddled. Sometimes it can really pay off…

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We Need More F.A.T. People

Last issue we discussed–in general terms–AV team building, task division, and a little about training. A couple more principles of good team building are in the areas of participation and excellence.

I really like what Bob Russell (Southeast Christian Church–Seven Principles of Church Growth) has to say about some of these things, and I highly recommend the book for gaining more clarity on the overall subject. Excuse me as I paraphrase.

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Christopher Cronin

One of the most intriguing plays to hit Broadway recently is the compelling drama Democracy, inspired by a real-life political scandal within the German government. Set at the start of the '70s during the Cold War, this imported British play explores the complex relationship between West German Chancellor Willy Brandt (played by James Naughton, whom you've seen in Nexium commercials) and his assistant, confidante and secret East German spy Günter Guillaume (Richard Thomas of Waltons fame). While the show tosses the audience into an overwhelming vortex of political and historical references during its first act, its more personal second act offers a rewarding emotional payoff.

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Getting to Carnegie Hall (Or Anywhere Else)

The rehearsal facility has been the quiet link in the touring chain for decades, though like the late Rodney Dangerfield, they rarely get the respect they deserve. And like most other components in the industry, larger forces are reshaping their business terrain. From the top-tier through the middle of the market, rates are feeling downward pressures. However, a greater diversity of services is the counterstrategy that seems to be working well in many cases.

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Is Everybody Happy?

Dear Anklebiters,

First, I would like to say that you guys are great. I have learned from and enjoyed your work over the last few months. Anyway, I do not own my own sound company, though I plan to one day soon. I am mainly a Front of House guy, but I can cover any position: stage manger, monitor world, doorman, bouncer, whatever. The only positions I have trouble with are ass kisser and babysitter. This brings me to my question: How do you make everyone happy, when the producer wants one thing, the club owner wants another and the band and their girlfriends want another?

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Let's Be Careful Out There

When I first heard about the shooting in an Ohio club that took the lives of four people, including the band's guitarist and two crew members, I was horrified–but I must admit I didn't know who DamagePlan was. I figured it was a local club deal where something got terribly out of hand. It's strange how when I found out the next morning that the guitarist was Dimebag Darrell from Pantera, it hit home. I was never a big metal guy or Pantera fan, but I know people who worked for them, and that made it much more personal.

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Future Sonics

Everyone knows necessity is the mother of invention, so it's not a surprise that Marty Garcia saw an opportunity in 1982 to ease the vocal strain of Todd Rundgren with a change in monitoring techniques. What's not so clear is how he went from setting up monitor wedges one day to putting denture gel and ear buds into Rundgren's ears the next. "That's good," Garcia laughs. "The thing of it is that in my mind, I've always been trying to perfect what I thought was a good audio system."

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