Open Mic Questions?

[The Bard Rocks]

[QUOTE=frankmcr;7420234]

Originally Posted by thestubbyone

There are a LOT of reasonably competent musicians out there. And even just people watching is interesting.

The only OM participants who've actually caused me and the rest of the audience pain are "poets" and - even worse - "comedians" .

Aspiring OM organizers, DO NOT say "we welcome all types of performers". Trust my many years' experience of attending open mikes on this.

I'd agree with this EXCEPT at one I attend, a "story teller" performs. Should be awful, right? Man. she is good!

[L20A]

I'm excited that our Open Mic will actually start happening in April.

It will be held twice a month to start out.
We have a small PA with 1 vocal mic and 1 instrument mic, and that will be all that is used for each set.

We did a dry run today and I'm very happy with the way the sound system is going to work.
The background noise from the machines in the venue will make using a PA a necessity.
There is already nightly music there and PA systems are a must.

The word is getting out and we have several people already wanting to sign up for the opening night.

Thank you everyone for your suggestions and tips.

[maxed]

Not to rain on the parade, but has anyone mentioned the ASCAP, BMI, etc., music license fees for live performances?

If people are doing cover-songs of popular music in a place of business, (in which the songs are not yet in the public domain), then the BMI "police" can basically shut it down. It would be wise to look up the regulations in your area.

This has been mentioned on this forum in previous open-mic performing discussions. I haven't actually witnessed it, but a few local open-mic venues I've attended (in Salem, OR) had to either pay up or cease their open-mic performance venues.



edit: I've re-read your post; You mentioned that this shop already hires musicians for the weekend. So maybe they're already paying the BMI fee (?)

[Mbroady]

Originally Posted by maxed

…..then the BMI "police" can basically shut it down. It would be wise to look up the regulations in your area.

(?)

Many open mics don’t allow covers for this reason.
On the other hand, the best open mics I’ve been do not allow covers.

[The Bard Rocks]

Originally Posted by maxed

Not to rain on the parade, but has anyone mentioned the ASCAP, BMI, etc., music license fees for live performances?

If people are doing cover-songs of popular music in a place of business, (in which the songs are not yet in the public domain), then the BMI "police" can basically shut it down. It would be wise to look up the regulations in your area.

This has been mentioned on this forum in previous open-mic performing discussions. I haven't actually witnessed it, but a few local open-mic venues I've attended (in Salem, OR) had to either pay up or cease their open-mic performance venues.

edit: I've re-read your post; You mentioned that this shop already hires musicians for the weekend. So maybe they're already paying the BMI fee (?)

This is a very real concern. I have not witnessed it, however, at open mikes. But have too many examples of other venues being harassed and deciding it was just better to shut down than try to deal with them or to pay up,. If the open mikes in my area were representative (which they are not), they'd ALL cut them out. Many are non-profit and the others get so little business that they could not justify the expense.

[L20A]

The Owners of the place have already paid the fees.
They hold live music events 3 days a week.
This will just be one of the events that they host.

We should be covered as far as ASCAP goes.

[6L6]

[QUOTE=maxed;7433150]Not to rain on the parade, but has anyone mentioned the ASCAP, BMI, etc., music license fees for live performances?

If people are doing cover-songs of popular music in a place of business, (in which the songs are not yet in the public domain), then the BMI "police" can basically shut it down. It would be wise to look up the regulations in your area.

This has been mentioned on this forum in previous open-mic performing discussions. I haven't actually witnessed it, but a few local open-mic venues I've attended (in Salem, OR) had to either pay up or cease their open-mic performance venues."

Yep. This very fact shut down a lot of cool Open Mics in San Francisco. The current OM I attend does have the BMI/ASCAP fees paid so they can allow covers.

[Mycroft]

Encourage performers to stick around for a few performers after they do their set. Courtesy. Others sat and listened to you; return the favor.

[Stringmaster]

Originally Posted by maxed

Not to rain on the parade, but has anyone mentioned the ASCAP, BMI, etc., music license fees for live performances?

If people are doing cover-songs of popular music in a place of business, (in which the songs are not yet in the public domain), then the BMI "police" can basically shut it down. It would be wise to look up the regulations in your area.

This has been mentioned on this forum in previous open-mic performing discussions. I haven't actually witnessed it, but a few local open-mic venues I've attended (in Salem, OR) had to either pay up or cease their open-mic performance venues.



edit: I've re-read your post; You mentioned that this shop already hires musicians for the weekend. So maybe they're already paying the BMI fee (?)

To add—technically if your original songs are registered with ASCAP, BMI etc., then they are also subject to fees! The only way around it it to not register your material, so it’s a dilemma!

[Robin, Wales]

[QUOTE=6L6;7433300]

Originally Posted by maxed

Not to rain on the parade, but has anyone mentioned the ASCAP, BMI, etc., music license fees for live performances?

If people are doing cover-songs of popular music in a place of business, (in which the songs are not yet in the public domain), then the BMI "police" can basically shut it down. It would be wise to look up the regulations in your area.

This has been mentioned on this forum in previous open-mic performing discussions. I haven't actually witnessed it, but a few local open-mic venues I've attended (in Salem, OR) had to either pay up or cease their open-mic performance venues."

Yep. This very fact shut down a lot of cool Open Mics in San Francisco. The current OM I attend does have the BMI/ASCAP fees paid so they can allow covers.

In the UK, most of the typical venues where you would want to hold an open mic' will already have a PRS licence (Performing Right Society). You could get a one-off licence for a typical open mic' event for around $15 if the venue you chose was not licenced. So asking performers to contribute towards that for an open mic' each month is not going to break the bank.

[frankmcr]

ASCAP and BMI are not in the business of closing down performance venues.

Their rates are calculated based on the venue's size, performance schedule, and other relevant factors. You can find them on line if you actually care about finding out instead of repeating tired out BS about "ASCAP thugs" etc etc.

Performing rights organization fees are a part of the cost of doing business. You might as well complain about the "electric company police" shutting down venues that refuse to pay their bills.

[cip]

Originally Posted by L20A

What if a lot of the people that try to do the Open Mic are not very good?

Most people who come to the open mic will not be very good, from my experience.

Im a beginner guitar player, but active musician and professional in other areas and im a regular at all the open mics. Me, along with all the other regulars are really not that great. Some might even say bad. Every so often really good singers come in, they may come a few times but they do not come back as regulars.

My guess is that the really good singers are practicing, not attending open mics, since they can be a 3-4 hour thing, if they're courteous and stick around for the whole thing and don't just bounce.

[Ralph124C41]

Originally Posted by Mbroady

Many open mics don’t allow covers for this reason.
On the other hand, the best open mics I’ve been do not allow covers.

I have never witnessed that at an open mic ... and I wonder if the host and/or the venue knows of the rule.

Which leads to another question? If you or your band host an open mic at, say, a bar ... who is responsible or would be held responsible for paying any fee? The host ... who provides the overall service ... or the venue which holds the event?

However this does occasionally happen. I was in a forming classic rock band years ago and we had our first gig lined up at a local bar. At the last moment we were told (or at least I was told) our gig was postponed indefinitely just for this reason. Now of course it could have been another reason but that was what I was told.

(Eventually we did play. And it was a nightmare. Our main p.a. died and we had to use a backup. We had a total of one couple dance to one song. And we found out our keyboard player hadn't learned most of the songs so he resorted to faking it ... I called it playing air keyboard. We dumped him after the set.)

Good times, though.