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In a never ending battle to assure the audience AND the performers have a pleasant audible experience i STILL cannot fathom a few simple things that have shown themselves to be constants throughout the industry. Put aside the fact that many promoters feel that their need to make as much money as possible as the primary (sometimes only)reason for staging a concert. Also put aside the driving force in contracting a sound company for a concert or festival is the ability of the contractor to meet a price point. Forget that any professional sound contractor should KNOW how much gear is needed to produce a reasonable , clear amount of amplified music for the given venue.( and i define professional as having not only the gear and the staff as well as the experience of doing events of this nature. Perhapse the most important aspect of this "professional" rating should be the possession of the knowledge and the fortitude to make sure the correct equipment and the correct quantity of equipment is provided for the task at hand! ) |
| With all these variables as givens...the question is a simple one with a twisted answer.
The Question: Why is there almost NEVER a sufficient amount of PA system provided for a gig? The answer seems to be directly pointing to the promoter's inability to see the need to grant the touring band (festival) the quality of gear they require. It also is partially the fault of the contractor in such that the promoter NEEDS to be educated on the importance of QUALITY SOUND. the contractor knows this. however, the job of teacher falls on us all... sure, the bands want to play for their audiences.. we want the show to blow the fans away! we know what is needed to do the job correctly. we even ASK for it in our riders. we even know that the sick reality is that we almost NEVER get what we want. the contractors SHOULD also know. they SHOULD be able to clearly state the necessity of these things to the promoter. sure there is a compromise between what we would like and what we can do with. the PROs know the happy medium ( some truly do NOT know, this is why we have riders!) this is why it is really important for there to be communication between the promoter, contractor and band's representative, aka the road manager and/or the band's engineer.) however, what i see happening time and time again is "we only brought in as much gear as the promoter was willing to pay for. So watch your volume and do not push the subs. yes, you should have more P.A. but this is what was paid for." herein is yet another aspect of the hell that can be touring. The contractor is forcing themselves into a state of uneasiness by NOT providing sufficient gear for the gig. The contractor has failed the gig, themselves AND the bands by NOT coming to a "safe", MONITARY compromise with the promoter. |
| This really is simple.. After countless conversations with the contractors... The distillate appears to be that the difference between "supplied-for-a-price" and "correct" amounts of gear is trucking and the addition of some additional personnel. What we are really talking about, from a dollars and cents standpoint, is not grandiose amounts of cash. Yes, i realize that the rental fees are varying from company to company. i also realize the amount of damage potential in supplying insufficient amounts of gear. reputation is also something that can be damaged by not supplying enough gear for a show. the reputations of the sound contractor AND the promoter ... so, wouldn't it make sense for the contractor AND the promoter to see the potential of NOT delivering the quality of gear needed for a gig? wouldn't it make sense for a contractor to fulfill the gear needs(and make a fair amount of money anyway) and have the promoter make a few less bucks(and STILL make a fair amount of cash)? or does it still have to be EVERYONE driven by making as much as possible, never reinforcing the need for QUALITY and having their reputations grow in unpleasant directions????? Surely, there can be a happy medium. really, what promoter or sound company would NOT want folks raving about the quality of a show? wouldn't that in itself generate MORE business for all involved??? how many shows have YOU been to where the PA was almost visible over the crowd, almost but not quite loud enough to hear clearly and sounded thin, had no "push" to feel the bottom end and enjoy the subtle sounds from the stage??? and what about the lighting ?? same story! and i am not stupid.. it is not cut and dry.. but the potential for compromise NEEDS to be explored! the sad fact is that the promotor has the final word. some will listen to their contractors and to the requirements of the bands, others will not. these are the shows that leave a foul stench in the nostrils of the engineers and some of the audience, the one's who's ears are educated enough to notice. it is sad though that these are the few. it is like the music industry "agreeing" on 16bit, 44.1Khz sampling for CDs. it is the acceptable minimum for the masses... think about how wonderful the industry might have been if there was the push for a higher definition CD in the beginning..... |