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My Music Festival

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  • September 16, 2015 at 7:42 am #2255731
    DJ Vintage
    Moderator

    Good job! Keep us posted.

    There was a series of articles a while back (somewhere last year I think?) on what is involved in building your own event. While you are clearly well underway, it might still yield a thought or tip or two.

    And for everyone being motivated and energized by your success story, do check it out.

    September 22, 2015 at 8:33 am #2258501
    Terry_42
    Keymaster

    Nice and this time I can say it: THIS IS AWESOME

    September 30, 2015 at 1:26 am #2262831
    Dirty Hippie
    Participant

    So I have hit the point of stress really creeping in. I am 8 months from the festival, and my budget is basically finalized. Ticks will go on sale officially in January. My major concern at this point is sound, light, and staging. I have taken several bids and all are within the budget, but my main fear is that the bands will not have what they need. None of the bands attached a rider to their contract and the contracts all indicate that the bands will provide their own equipment. However, I am new at this, so they may be expecting something standard that I am unaware of. My DJays are easy. I have a pair of CDJ 200nxs and a DJM 900NXS, as well as a pair 1210’s for the two vinyl DJays booked.

    Does anyone have any experience running events with bands? If so, what is expected on stage from the venue other than the PA, lighting, monitors, and a sound engineer to handle the levels, etc.?

    On a side note, I used a fraction of the budget for design and graphics to get Photoshop and made my own posters, flyers, and web page (still in progress), saving a significant margin and learning a new skill in the process. I have gotten numerous compliments on the poster which I made with the help of a few tutorials.

    Peace,
    Dirty Hippie

    September 30, 2015 at 9:41 am #2263151
    Terry_42
    Keymaster

    Well depends on the bands. Some expect nothing.
    Most expect minimum: Enough to drink (and I mean water above all). Make sure you have tons of waterbottles, preferrable 0.5 litre bottles.
    Some expect a stage guide: A guy who will handle stage transitions, exchange faulty microphones, give signals for DJs to transition to the next DJ and so on. Basically the guy for everything on stage and getting on stage.
    I do not think that you need more for a festival that size.

    October 5, 2015 at 4:14 pm #2266701
    DJ Vintage
    Moderator

    Just make sure the PA you have is sufficient to handle a (big) band as well as the DJs. The bands said they would bring their own gear, this will include all backline equipment and monitors.

    However, multiple bands sharing a stage can be pretty tricky if YOU as an organizer are not in control. My advice would be to have a real good live FoH (Front of House) and a real good monitor engineer and together with them and the band engineers work out the way to best set up the stage, the transitions, cabling, shared use (often a drum set can be shared for example as well as monitor speakers).

    Also work out a good soundcheck schedule.

    In short, get somebody that knows how to do a multiple act live sound event from an engineering/stage management perspective.

    October 6, 2015 at 8:34 pm #2267891
    Dirty Hippie
    Participant

    Thanks for the replies. What about mics and mic stands? Mics seem like a very important piece of equipment in a live band situation so you would not think the bands would leave that to the venue, but some people seem to think it is expected.

    October 7, 2015 at 1:33 am #2267991
    bob6397
    Participant

    It will depend on the band. I would definitely have a plentiful supply of Shure SM58’s and 57’s though – people prefer using mics they recognise.. 🙂

    If I was a band, I would expect to have the option of using provided kit, especially if it was a smaller festival (Bigger acts bring their own recording engineers let alone mic systems.. And I am talking Chart-Toppers here..)

    Mic Stands are a must. Remember that you can use up to 8 per drum kit along with 2 for each Guitar amp and at least one for each vocalist.. Plus spares..

    I would expect your Sound Equipment company to provide all this though – speak to them?

    bob6397

    October 7, 2015 at 4:51 pm #2268571
    Dirty Hippie
    Participant

    I agree that the sound company should know all of this. My concern is making sure my sound company is doing what they should. The quote they gave me is very detailed, and I want to be sure it is everything that is needed but not being charged for items that are not. As this festival progresses in years to come I will know a lot more, but I am trying to get up to snuff this go ’round to make sure the bands and audience are happy when it is over.

    Another milestone, I was able to secure my web domain for dirt cheap with free hosting. Now I have to brush up on my web design skills and get the site off the ground. We also hit 250 rsvps and 175 “maybe” on Facebook which I feel is a great amount for an event 8 months away. We are purposefully holding back 4 more headliner announcements to build buzz again right before ticket sales officially start.

    October 7, 2015 at 5:35 pm #2268591
    DJ Vintage
    Moderator

    Just make sure you clearly outline what you need/expect from the sound company. Take the risk they might charge you a bit for stuff you could (later in your career) do yourself or won;t need. It beats trying to figure it all out yourself with no current knowledge and wiping on the night itself.

    In general I find that sound companies care more about repeat business than one time “scores”. Be upfront and honest, sit down with them and clearly document who is responsible for what.

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