Re: [Harp-L] shifting gears...Big vs Small

[Richard Hunter <turtlehill@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Warren Bee wrote:
<I think Richard Hunter is more interested in promoting a big harmonica
<concert festival. Lots of people, big names etc. Well, my final thought on
<that is go for it brother! As long as you are sure that you will be
<preserving and advancing the harmonica in the process I am sure that we
<involved in these small time events will be looking to you for inspiration
<and direction.

I'm not so much interested in promoting a big festival as I am in promoting harmonica and the people who play it.  In general, the more people who show up at a festival, the more attention the festival gets from the press, musicians, etc.  

I agree that the intimacy of current harmonica festivals is unique and wonderful.  You can't walk up to Eric Clapton at the Crossroads Festival and hang with him, but you can walk up to Howard Levy at SPAH. This is something you find nowhere else in the musical world, and it is to be treasured.

You give something up for everything you get, no matter who you are or what you're into.  A larger festival would bring more attention to harmonica, more interest, more players, which inevitably means better players.  Why are there so many great guitarists around?  Because so many people play guitar.  You can't have 100,000 people playing guitar without producing a bunch of virtuosos.  And better players in greater numbers means more composers writing for harmonica, and--gasp!--more PAID work for harmonica players everywhere. That's what you get. 

A larger festival might also mean less intimacy at SPAH, and I agree that this is undesirable.  Perhaps something can be done to retain that intimacy.  Perhaps not.

This is why it's so important to have a vision.  Change is neither better nor worse per se.  It's different, meaning that something is won and something lost.  The question is: what do you give up for what you get?  

So I ask the question I asked earlier: what's the vision for the harmonica festival 10 years from now?  What's the experience that's desired for the people who attend?  If that's laid out, then it's possible to talk about how you get there.

Here's one idea: the harmonica festival of the future is broken out into a series of days devoted to particular levels of players.  Day one is for novices, and features lots of instruction in basic techniques, plus seminars in jamming, gear, etc.  Day two is for intermediate level players, and features seminars in particular styles, discussions of advanced techniques, more jamming, and maybe even courses on making it in the music business.  Day three is all masterclasses taught by top pros, with plenty of concert performances.  Day four is jamming all day long, with a concert at the end.  Attendees can buy tickets by the day or by the week.

Is this a formula that will retain intimacy while increasing the numbers of attendees--especially beginners and intermediate players--and the quality of the experience?  Maybe.  It's not the only approach.  



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