[Harp-L] Harmonica conventions in Europe - Some reflexion

[Joseph Leone]

So thrilled am I to see this exchange between Sebastien (someone who I have followed closely for years) and my good friend Patrice. Here’s my thoughts. Not that they mean much.

EVERYone should get behind Patrice. All of Europe is still smaller than the U.S. and while some distances are great, it is still a compact sub-continent with a huge population. A population
with some of the very best players/innovators in the world. I happen to be partial to French players. But that’s a different subject. 
I am in the same camp with Sebastien. To go to a convention here (4-5 days) cost me around 1,100 euros. About half of what I have per month. Almost every convention is over 2,000km one way.
Some are like going from Madrid to Istanbul. To go to Europe could easily cost me over 2,500 euros. Btw, I recently visited my older sister in Normandy. The entire 6 weeks cost me 1,101 euros.
4-5 days compared with 45 days. Big difference. lol. 

 The fallacy is that everyone in the U.S. is wealthy. Not true.  Most of the leadership of spah have been (for lack of a better word) better off financially. And they usually go into their own pockets to make spah work. 
Europe is more compact. It ’should' be possible to organize something in Europe.  I hope that this happens. Patrice’s positive attitudes over the years haven’t escaped my attention. 

Smokey-joe (whom has lived Vienna, Trieste, Naples, Paris. Currently in Florida aka ‘God’s waiting room’. lolol.   

> On Feb 8, 2018, at 3:02 PM, Patrice Rayon <stpat95 at xxxxx> wrote:
> 
> Salut Sébastien,
> 
> 
> To answer to you from France...
> 
> I understand that if you speak about European harmonica convention, this is because you are aware of SPAH convention taking place every year for 5 days in August in a town of USA.
> 
> In Europe I believe that convention is something we know about... we have festivals, workshops, etc... but no conventions.
> 
> 
> Of course if you have enough money to be able to go to SPAH convention in Saint Louis (beautifull town, and the big arch to see really great) it may cost around 2000€ to 2500€ from France or Belgium...
> 
> 
> 
> It is very interresting to build a network on both side of the ocean, also that make you realize that most of harmonicas players are able to give the name of artists from their own country, but far less from other ones :)
> 
> Last August people in SPAH could give me 2 or 3 names of french harp players at most...when there far more... same in France, lots of people are not able to give a lot of name of harp players from USA .... but when you move to the events of the other countries there are lots of great things to see, people to meet, get new friends with common interrests, make them discover thing s from your place and the reverse ...
> 
> 
> With my website, this is also what I am trying to encourage for already more than 15 years ( harmonicacontact.com ). I can tell Roger Trobridge proposed me to give my point of view here today and he is from UK, I am from Paris area (France). I have good contact with Mickael D'eath from SPAH, and other people from lots of countries... All that because moving to see the other, and not mainly waiting for them to come :) ...
> 
> 
> In Belgium up to 2016 there was the big harmonica festival in Liège... But Gregoire Family cancelled it... The very last one was 2016. The sad thing was that there was more french people than people from Belgium there... I the festival was GREAT!!! Instead there will be now a music festival, but with few harmonica I believe and much more singers and guitar players... I know someone in Belgium who would like to create a new harmonica festival in Liège, but he may need lot of support from harp players from local area, from the country...
> 
> 
> To get harmonica players to know each other I built this calendar where the artists enter their own date fro french speaking area:
> 
> http://harmonicacontact.com/Agendas/Francophonie.html
> 
> 
> I did the same but based on Bandsintown dates for world: http://harmonicacontact.com/Agendas/World.html <http://harmonicacontact.com/Agendas/World.html>
> 
> I did it because the one managed in USA was dead... Lots of people like, but when I ask for new harmonica artists adding their dates on Bandsintown nobody  answers (but lots of people take a look every day) ... I believe that that NOTHING is IMPOSSIBLE... the only impossible things are the ones you don't try to do because you don't believe in... To believe is poductive, to be septical creates nothing...
> 
> 
> In UK, Neil Waren believed in it like NHL association!!! So they manadge that : http://www.harmonica.co.uk/GigList.htm  (not only the http://harmonica.co.uk/diary.htm )
> 
> 
> If you come to Harmonicas sur Cher French harp festival (Next in the Ascention 2019 so in may) you meet many harmonica players, but also Brodur, I thing Dom'seal, (one guy from Los Angeles last time in 2017) etc...
> 
> 
> Sébastien Keep in touch (I am also a friend of Charlier, Peyrelvade, Olivier Ker Ourio who was himself very good friend of Toots ;) who was himslef a friend of harmoliège where he came  and lots of people who organise thins here around and I know a lot of things in advance).
> 
> The more you meet harmonica world people, the more again you know harmonica world people (ths is exponential!!!)... And really I would be so happy that Belgium artists (Geneviève, Thierry, Olivier, Steven etc...) to speak together, and find benevols (why not the ones of harmoliège) to continue the story of the belgium festival who was I believe the very one in Europe being independant of harmonical sailors ;) ....
> 
> 
> And please contact Paul Lassey to be on this map: http://www.harmonicacontact.com/Articles_francophone/article_170127_Carte_harmonicistes.html
> 
> Also on this one: http://www.harmonicacontact.com/Articles_francophone/article_161207_Carte_Francophone_profs.html   !!!! (If you teach the harmonica only)
> 
> Also if you want to make your own harmonicas events to the french speaking areas calendar, please contact me in private
> 
> I also warmly recommand you to go to NHL Britsol harmonica festival the very last weekend of October next year (2018)...
> 
> 
> Patrice RAYON
> 
> PS: Thank you Roger ...I was about to miss the post of Sébastien... So you see Sébastien, Roger Trobridge from wanted as well to help you...
> 
> 
> 
> ________________________________
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Sébastien Frémal <sebastien.fremal at xxxxx>
> To: Harp-l <harp-l at xxxxx>
> Sent: Thu, Feb 8, 2018 7:04 am
> Subject: [Harp-L] [Harp-l] Harmonica conventions in Europe - Some reflexion
> 
> Hi !!
> 
> I was thinking yesterday evening about harmonica conventions in Europe and
> I thought maybe it's worth a message, a conversation. I don't know if it's
> recent, but I see many nice harmonica projects in Europe. Cain's UK
> harps, Brodur's french harps, french dom'y'seal... And behind these
> projects, there are interesting people with who we could
> have interesting chats. There are a lot of known or unknown harmonica
> players it would be great to hear and meet... I checked for harmonica
> conventions to see if it was possible to meet these people, to discover
> these projects, learn some harmonica technics... I'm in Belgium, I'm
> half-time artist (I need a half-time conventional job to pay the roof and
> the food), I don't have a lot of money. I checked the internet for nearby
> and affordable conventions. I found this page :
> http://harmonica.co.uk/diary.htm
> 
> I won't go into details, but most conventions are far and expensive and
> strongly blues-oriented (I'm more interested in the chromatic
> Massolo/Charlier/Peyrelevade style). If I could reach the convention
> location, workshops are pretty all focused around blues and most are really
> really expensive (often half the money I have to hold the month, and
> sometimes they even ask all I have). And I found no conventions about just
> gathering, meeting and sharing innovations or thought on the instrument.
> There are no "harmonica markets" where you could meet people like Cain or
> Messier to discover and try their work. Or just meet people who are not
> necessarily blues players and who could share their knowledge with the new
> generation.
> 
> And I'm from the country which gave birth to one of the most known
> harmonica player. But there is only one convention once every two years.
> And as their budget is pretty limited, they offer interesting but limited
> "content".
> 
> There it is, some thought about the lack of opportunity to meet new people
> and to share about innovations and technics in the harp world. Maybe some
> things could be done, I don't know. I hope so :)
> 
> Sebastien Fremal
>