Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Banjiman
Date: 27 May 09 - 06:41 PM

Agreed. As long as he is inviting and actually managing to get some organisers in.

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Rasener
Date: 27 May 09 - 04:13 PM

Sounds like John Prentice needs an award for all the good work he is doing.

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: My guru always said
Date: 27 May 09 - 04:10 PM

I understand that there will be a Hiring Fair at Alcester this year and that John Prentice is running it. Gets around a bit doesn't he *grin*

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Rasener
Date: 27 May 09 - 03:24 PM

As long as you don't banjo me ............

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Banjiman
Date: 27 May 09 - 03:00 PM

..... and you're bigger than me!

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Rasener
Date: 27 May 09 - 02:14 PM

I asked first :-) LOL

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Banjiman
Date: 27 May 09 - 01:43 PM

..... I was hoping to get one as well!

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Rasener
Date: 27 May 09 - 01:40 PM

Do I get an invite as a club organiser?

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Bernard
Date: 27 May 09 - 12:15 PM

John also runs the Saddleworth Hiring Fair... though I'm not sure that many festival/club organisers actually make use of it.

You can always rely on John to run a tight ship, and give a fair (if sometimes scathing!) critique...

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Banjiman
Date: 27 May 09 - 11:37 AM

Do you know which festival & club organisers have been invited? And which have said they will attend?

These are important details for prospective acts to know!

Thanks

Paul

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Shantyfreak
Date: 27 May 09 - 11:29 AM

The Cleckheaton Hiring Fair will be run by John Prentice so performers should get good feedback. Also invites are out to festival and club organisers so the target audience should be there. It is a bit late for performers to get in this year but hopefully it is going to be an annual event.
It should be worthwhile to attend just to get a feel of things.

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Fidjit
Date: 16 Mar 09 - 03:09 PM

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Fidjit
Date: 14 Mar 09 - 08:15 AM

More or less what floor singing was about in the 60's. All in the hope of getting a booking later on. The club organisers ( I refuse to put a "z" in that word) would know what you were about next time you contacted them.

Sending cd's is a waste. They just go into someones cd rack and gather dust.

Lets face it there are lots of us stirring the broth.
Chas

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Becks
Date: 14 Mar 09 - 07:08 AM

RE: Myspace.
I have found the different websites to be really usefull in getting gigs. Myspace, Facebook and Mudcat have all helped. After going to a clubs singaround/session and later getting in touch via myspace when I get home because I am too much of a coward to ask for a gig there and then. I have even asked for gigs without meeting the organsers via myspace email, that so far has worked. I have had a few unprompted gigs to. So all in all I think Myspace is a really usefull tool to get work.

RE: Hiring fairs
I am not so sure about hiring fairs, I hear so many different reports about them, some good but most bad. Mainly that organisers dont go and you are really just playing to other musicians. But in a business where you need to make a name for yourself when you are new to it (like me) I dont think it does any harm to do them.
I would love to do a few and give them a go but by the time I find out about them they are fully booked and usually by the same people performing.

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Banjiman
Date: 14 Mar 09 - 07:05 AM

[Blush re KFFC]

The missus has been offered quite a lot of gigs via MySpace, plenty from floor spots and plenty from sending CD (though this is hit and miss: I'm sure the currently being recorded new CD will make all the difference!!). The impenetrable nature of big festivals is a challenge though.... unless you are on the books of the top half a dozen agents (I assume).

Main problem we've found with hiring fairs is that there are not many hirers at them!

I second Tim's comments on Gainsborough and Faldingworth.

The Black Swan in York presents an excellent balance of performers from all rungs of the ladder (you can understand why it is the BBC radio 2 Folk Club of the year!). My favourite club, excluding the obvious.

Paul

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Tim Leaning
Date: 14 Mar 09 - 06:36 AM

Not been to KFFC yet,but never heard or read owt but good reports.
Gainsbro and Faldingworth Live are both excellent too.

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: stallion
Date: 14 Mar 09 - 05:19 AM

nope not myspace, but then we don't do many anyway( I like to think that our gigs are like rare stamps so collect them whilst you can! Mind you only if you like the look of the stamp!) day jobs get in the way. From my limited experience organisers like to see the acts "in the Flesh" and hiring fairs seem to be useful, however, there are a lot of good perfomers around, indeed very good performers around who still don't put enough bums on seats to be viable and so organisers book the big draws, who can blame them. Paulo and the KFFC Winter Warmer was a perfect example of some wonderful performers (I exclude 2BS&S, declaring an interest!)who are not big names (yet)but are as good as it gets, the quality of the music was superb and a cracking atmosphere and a massive big up to the KFFC
Peter

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Tim Leaning
Date: 13 Mar 09 - 04:20 PM

Re My Space
I have had 5 or 6 offers of gigs through mine.
A pity 'cos I dont do gigs,but I am sure other proper bands must find it useful as it does take some time to monitor once it is set up.

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Northerner
Date: 13 Mar 09 - 01:39 PM

I'm not sure if Whitby has a hiring fair these days. I think they have an Open Stage spot instead. Best to contact one of the admistrators and find out. Contact details are on the Whitby website.

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Fidjit
Date: 12 Mar 09 - 01:39 PM

Just a thought.

Anyone getting any booking via MYSPACE ?
I mean like after having sent the link to someone.

Chas

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Leadfingers
Date: 12 Mar 09 - 08:45 AM

I have lost count of the number of times we get asked for our contact info as "You are JUST what I am looking for!" and never here anything again !

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: nutty
Date: 12 Mar 09 - 08:30 AM

Saddleworth FF has a run a hiring fair for a number of years. Its run by John Prentice who also runs the Whitby Hiring Fair.

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: My guru always said
Date: 12 Mar 09 - 07:52 AM

I'm sure there was a hiring fair at Alcester Festival last year, don't know how it went or if it'll be on this year though.

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Hamish
Date: 12 Mar 09 - 07:14 AM

Towersey? Not as such. They do have a number of folk club events and the best two or three acts get to perform at the Sunday evening concert in the church. Of course that may well lead to bookings, but it's not a hiring fair as such.

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Fidjit
Date: 12 Mar 09 - 06:22 AM

I think Towersey has something simular

Chas

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Rasener
Date: 12 Mar 09 - 05:39 AM

Any other input?

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Lenny's mum (inactive)
Date: 11 Mar 09 - 05:14 PM

Cleckheaton Folk festival is a really nice friendly festival and the the Hiring Fair is making a comeback for the 2009 festival. Have a look at the website to find all the information.
www.cleckheatonfolkfestival.org

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Banjiman
Date: 11 Mar 09 - 04:19 PM

Les, Bob,

We did Whitby.... it was OKish. Plenty of people there but mainly either other acts or friends of other acts..... who did included some FC organisers.

We (well, when I say we I mean Wendy... I just provided a bit of banjo interference as usual) didn't get any direct bookings out of it but it did raise awareness and has probably helped a bit.

There were others there who had done the smart thing and had spoken to some organisers before they went and discovered they would be at Whitby Folk week.... they asked them to come along and see them. I understand that this did get bookings for at least one act.

BTW Bob, you can't do the Whitby Hiring Fair as it clashes with when my missus is playing Aberdeen Folk Club..... and she needs some audience!!

Bob, drop me a PM and we'll see if we can help you at all.

Cheers

Paul

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: BobKnight
Date: 11 Mar 09 - 03:14 PM

"Villan" is telling the truth - He's asked about this on my behalf. We've exchanged a few messages on myspace, and I asked him about getting into English festivals and clubs - very helpful man. Thanks once again.

Bob

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Rasener
Date: 11 Mar 09 - 02:59 PM

Willa and Sugwash have pointed out Cleckheaton.

It looks like it could be workable. Probably worth finding out who has booked so far and who are the key players who are likeley to be there for possibly hiring the acts if they are good enough or float their boat.

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Sugwash
Date: 11 Mar 09 - 02:53 PM

My home town of Cleckheaton's Folk Festival have one this year. I had no idea what it entailed until reading this thread. When I've gone back to the festival web site I see that they now have a page explaining what goes on: CLICKY It seems a rum way to get a booking, but if it works, why not. Minds't you, this is West Yorkshire we're talking about, so they'll want 'summat for nowt'!

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Rasener
Date: 11 Mar 09 - 02:43 PM

Thats an important point Paul and why I asked the questions.

If I remember rightly, Whitby used to be very good and did what it set out to do.

In the past, I think some used to charge the performer for performing.

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Banjiman
Date: 11 Mar 09 - 02:38 PM

"Oh by the by, it isn't for me LOL :-) "

Are you sure Les?

Our experience of hiring fairs (though we haven't played them all, obviously) is that they are a bit of a waste of time. I can think of some (not at major festivals) that are really billed as hiring fairs just to get fairly decent acts to play for nothing..... I can think of 2 in particular where the only club organiser (or other booker) present was me!

Which is great except that I wasn't booking but trying to get booked!

I would check out in detail who is going to be present before playing this kind of event.

This isn't just sour grapes, we do get plenty of bookings by other routes.

Paul

Subject: RE: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Willa
Date: 11 Mar 09 - 02:21 PM

Whitby still has a hiring fair and this thread may be of interest

thread.cfm?threadid=117805#2540568

Subject: Hiring Fairs @ Folk Festivals in England
From: Rasener
Date: 11 Mar 09 - 02:10 PM

I sometimes get asked this, and am not really sure what is happening in todays Folk Festivals in England. So can you Festival experts help me out please.

Which English Folk festivals, still do Hiring Fairs
What are the stipulations concerning such hiring fairs
What folk clubs are in the neighbourhood of such hiring fairs

Links to those festivals and clubs would be very useful

And just to soup it up a bit, which Festivals do you think have the best and most respected hiring fairs.

Many thanks
Les Worrall

Oh by the by, it isn't for me LOL :-)