ambient

There’s a lot of ignorance about working in the creative industry following Brexit. It’s not a simple matter. American musicians did indeed perform in Europe, but only those at a high level with financial backing. It costs money, a visa is required for each country. Most people working in the creative industry are self employed, and follow a DIY style of working. I’ve performed in Europe and worked as an academic in Sweden. The budget for the kind of things I do - and most others too - isn’t sufficient. It’s not just visas - as you’d discover if you did a bit of research. There’s VAT payable upfront at each border on merchandise for instance. You claim back what you don’t sell, that takes months to come through. It’s not just musicians and artists either. There’s actors, technicians - lighting, sound engineers etc. People who work in film and TV production are also affected. Many were employed as freelancers, you can't now just be employed by a French or German company, they need to have offered it to an EU resident first.

A pretty cool Instagram page. https://instagram.com/beneath_the_bassline?utm_medium=copy_link

Order it from Thomman. If you don’t like it simply return it. It’s in-stock, and free shipping. The price there excludes VAT, with that added on it's just over £700, which is quite a lot cheaper than Gear4Music - I don’t know what Guitar Guitar are selling them at. https://m.thomann.de/gb/markbass_cmd_102p_lm3.htm

Have you a link to your review please?

I used to use a trolley. It safely carried my DB up and down to London from Birmingham by train. Just make sure to use some quality bungee ropes. I was always pleasantly surprised the number of people who stopped and helped me carry it up or down stairs at tube stations.

Lichtenstein is landlocked and doesn’t have an airport, so getting there may pose a problem. I believe - could be wrong - that there’s only only one music venue there.

I saw that. I was going to enquire about a gig there, though I’m guessing there’s going to be a massive stampede of UK artists wanting to play, so I’ll wait a while.

Thank you.

Congratulations. You’ll have a wonderful time, believe me, it goes incredibly fast. With the right mindset it can definitely be life-changing.

That’s Lily.

This is why I play a 6 string bass.

I picked this up on Tuesday from a guy in London. It needs new strings and a setup, which should be done next week. Overall I’m very pleased with it. It’s a Stentor Conservatoire, approximately ten years old. The guy actually sold it as a Stentor Student 2, I noticed the Conservatoire label inside earlier today. The Conservatoire model is quite a lot better than the Student model, and consequently a lot more money. It has a carved front and back - the back is really nicely flamed.

I rented an instrument from them for a while. He was working out of a house at the time - that was a few years ago now though.

I came across this via Talkbass. http://www.hervejeanne.de/en/string-matrix

Yeah, I did the HnD first too, though at ICMP. You’re absolutely right, you take from it what you want.

Did you do the degree course? I went to ICMP. I mentioned above, the audition to get in there was incredibly hard. There were written harmony and theory and aural tests. I think there were two sight-reading tests. One playing unaccompanied lines, the other along to a backing track. As well as various scale and arpeggio tests. I auditioned at BIM in Bristol too. That wasn’t as demanding as ICMP. The guy running The audition was a lot nicer and more approachable too. It’s surprising how varied the auditions are.

He does them. Though he asks that you collect the instrument in a timely manner, to avoid him running out of room in his workshop.

Thanks for the replies and suggestions. A friend recommended this guy. He has a small workshop not too far from me. https://www.ksblutherie.com

I believe numbers should be limited. They’ll be moaning when it all flares up again. https://musiciansunion.org.uk/working-performing/coronavirus-guidance/overview-of-covid-19-restrictions-for-musicians

This is my big worry. I’ve seen a few other posts on here like this. We seem - in some places at least - to be rushing back to normality. I’ve done two jazz gigs recently - the band has a nice little residency - however we have to be tested prior to going in, which means arriving thirty minutes early, we have to wear masks whilst walking about, and maintain social distancing. The number of people watching is limited. Basically everything to mitigate spread of infection. A friend of mine held an event on Saturday. It was strictly tickets in advance only, and masks and social distancing had to be observed. Those were the venue rules, which seem sensible to me.

Your performance piece is important, but don’t forget about other things they’ll probably test you on. When I auditioned for my BMus the performance piece was actually a pretty small part of the audition process. They were more concerned with my harmony and theory knowledge. There was a sight-reading test, an aural exam, and a written theory test. Playing wise they asked me to play two octave scales - I think they asked for modes too - definitely four note arpeggios. They were listening for how cleanly everything was executed, so if you play a five or six string make sure your muting is good. Just try and stay relaxed, and good luck with the audition.

I’m picking up a really lovely looking DB from London on Tuesday. It will probably need new strings, whatever’s on it were on when the guy bought it ten years ago. I’m going to have it setup too. Does anyone have any recommendations as to where to take it please? I’m just outside Birmingham. Thanks.