Why I thank the Lord that I was born and raised in Mill Hill

On Saturday night I watched Joe Angel and the Pamodzi band perform a set of the finest reggae music known to man at The Three Hammers pub. The whole place was one massive party united in a love of music. On Sunday morning I read about the shootings in Charlestown, where a deeply disturbed young man with a legally owned firearm went on the rampage, wishing to start a "race war".

There are many conclusions I have drawn from these two events, but I guess top of the list is to thank the good Lord that I was born and raised in Mill Hill rather than a culture where nutcases owning guns is seen as a constitutional right and where ethnic divisions are rife. God Bless London for its sanity and diversity (I hope those of you who are non believers subscribe to this sentiment if not my wording, it is the best figure of speech I can come up with to describe my feelings).

Charlotte Church summed up how I view our country and nationalism very well in a recent speech at a rally "i'm proud to be british because of our nhs, the welfare system and david bowie, not because of the union jack....we will not be silenced."- It is worth listening to what she had to say.

Please don't let anyone destroy the things that really make our country great. You don't have to look very hard to realise that we've actually got a great country and a great society. Sadly the biggest threat to our country is one from those at the top, who don't believe in fairness and social justice.

 

The Mill Hill Music Festival - Rog T's Festival Diary - Day 9 - Joe Angel/Misdemeanour

Day 9 - Joe Angel and the Pamodzi Band + Misdemeanour at The Three Hammers. The final night of the festival and Mill Hill's biggest party for 2 years, since the last end of festival party. In terms of attendance, we've had record crowds and in terms of music, it has been absolutely brilliant. You may think that after nine consecutive nights, I'd be feeling jaded. In actual fact I feel a sense of total elation at a job well done. But this is my festival diary, so lets consentrate on the job in hand. As has become the norm during the festival, I had a relatively late start, waking up at 9am. I started the day with a breakfast and then started to write the day 8 festival diary.

As I had to collect the stage from Hartley Hall, this was cut short. I'd arrange to meet the crew and Dave the caretaker at 9.45 at Hartley Hall. So a quick trip to the studio to collect the BALLS bike club van and then around to Hartley Hall. I'd arranged for Gerry and festival volunteer Steve to meet me, so that with Dave we could get the stage out. This proved to be a challenge. Dave had a trapped nerve in his back, so couldn't help. Therefore a job that would be easy with four people became a logistics exercise. Hartley Hall is a great venue and Mill Hill is lucky to have it. There are however a few issues with getting gear in and out. As the Hall is in the basement, all gear either has to be taken passed through a narrow loading gap. For large items such as stages, this is the only feasable way in, but it is problematical. It requires people on ladders, which to me is inherently risky. Passing heavy items to people through a narrow hatch is never a great idea and all you need to do is drop something and someone will get hurt. I think a winch and pulley system would be far safer and will be speaking with the Hall to suggest a few ideas. If you are designing a Hall, get in touch with me and for a small consideration, I'll help you design the safest and most accessible hall you could possibly want! I've spent 35 years moving gear about and if you have a safe load in, it makes a world of difference. It is easy to sort this out at the design stage, but once the building is built, then you can suddenly find that you have all manner of problems, some of which massively restrict the usability of the space. For me, safety at work (which I classify this as) is paramount. I think some of my fellow committee members think I am a bit overzealous insisting that if someone goes over 4ft high on ladder which is unsecured, someone should be at the bottom holding it, but ladder accidents are one of the most common causes of workplace injuries and are avoidable if you follow the rules. Anyway, rant over. We recovered the stage and loaded it onto the van for later.

I then had to unload the PA system from the Galaxy, so a quick drive to the studio and unload at around 11am. Another friend of mine, Big Paul turned up with some extra equipment from the Golf club, which couldn't fit in the Galaxy. He had a cup of tea and was amazed at just how busy the studio is on a Saturday morning. I think anyone who sees our staff when we are busy is always impressed. 95% of the time, the job involves sitting around, drinking tea and chatting. The other 5% of the time is manic. By noon this was done and so I had a completely different job. In another guise, I am on the Sacred Heart Church Parish Council. This morning they were organising a Fathers day bacon roll and cup of tea for parishioners, to raise cash towards improving the Church Hall. Father Kevin at Mill Hill, who I consider a friend, is trying to improve the hall. When the church was rebuilt 20 years ago, they made the classic mistake of simply letting an architect design it and a builder build it. He told me that if you have a community space, you need to show the plans to the Hall users, rather than just admire the pretty pictures. He said that the hall needs remodelling and when it is done (which it will be), he will ensure that the Brownies, the elderly groups and people like me who organise music etc will be consulted. In the current hall, the shape is wrong, there is not enough storage for the Brownies etc and the Kitchens and toilets can only support one event, although the Hall can be devided into two. In short, the plans don't work. The main reason I agreed to join the Parish Council, was I believe Churches and Church Halls are the hub of our community. These spaces mean we can hold music festivals, Brownies and Scouts have meeting space, Alcoholics Anon have a space, we have somewhere for weddings, funerals, etc. When I was growing up, I used to attend a youth club at the Methodist Church in Goodwyn Avenue. This is now flats. St Josephs College on the Ridgeway, where my band did several gigs, my sister had her wedding reception and there used to be a glorious garden fete every summer is also flats. This used to stage events for the Mill Hill Music festival. We need to protect these spaces (another rant over).

Anyway, I absented myself from the bacon roll morning (I knew I'd be too tired), but I did say I'd get them the bacon. So I spoke to my good friend, Helen Michael from Cafe Buzz and said "You sell the best Bacon sarnies in Barnet, can you get me enough quality bacon for 160 rolls." Helen of course said yes. So I had to nip up to Cafe Buzz and collect the bacon. It also meant I could have one of Helens tasty Full English Breakfasts. Necessary if you won't eat agin till 2am.

Then it was back to the studio, via the Bacon drop off at the Church, to load up for the Three Hammers gig. The gear was loaded by 3.30 and Jack accompanied me to the Hammers. The first task was to unload the gear. We then built the stage, set up the drum Kit, built the PA and set up the amps. Joe and the boys arrived sharp at 6pm for soundcheck, followed by Misdemeanour. I know both bands well. Graham Ramsay, drummer of Misdemeanour has played in my band on and off for 30 years. We are currently collaborating on an album. I've also known the rest of the band for years, apart from the lovely singers Shelley and her sister, who are ere youngsters, but have quickly become part of the Mill Hill Music family! Joe has been rehearsing at the studio for years. Joe is a hugely talented musician. Next to Punk rock, reggae is my favourite genre of music and Joe should be a superstar. He has the looks and the talent and has assembled a superb bunch of musicians.

Both soundchecks went without a hitch. At 8.50pm, Misdemeanour took to the stage. The do everything from James Brown to The Beatles to Carole King. My fellow festival organiser Dan was quite amazed by the variety of their set. I think that as he knew Graham was my drummer, the pub would be treated to a set of The Clash and The Pistols, but Alan on guitar is a brilliant player and the band can play anything. Even Brian, our Jazz buff liked them!  By the time Misdemeanour had finished, the pub was heaving. All too soon, they'd finished. We held the raffle, which raised a substancial sum. The raffles are used to help us meet the costs of running the festival. Jenni our raffle organiser, has raised around £1,000 for the festival. This just about covers the cost of stamps for our mailout. We run on a not for profit basis, but need to keep money in the bank, as most costs are up front, such as insurance, stamps, printing, hall deposits, equipment, banners, etc. In all including hire of halls etc, the festival costs around £15,000 to stage. Neither myself nor any of the festival organisers take a penny in pay for this. I also provide all of the studio sound equipment free of charge for the duration of the festival. With the loan of the Balls club van and Gerry's van & all of the other goodwill help we get, we probably have about £5,000 savings, which otherwise would probably make the festival untenable.

 I've no idea how many people turned up at the Hammers, but I'd estimate 250-300. Even better, they were up for a party!

Joe Angel and the Pamozi Band

At 10pm, Joe Angel took to the stage. The place was already in party mood, but they went wild.The Marley classics such as One Love, No Woman No Cry and Jammin' went down a storm. The place went mad.The whole place was dancing and singing along.

As I sat at the mixing desk, I felt quite emotional that the festival was coming to an end. It is a long time since I've seen the Hammers quite as busy. Every night of the Festival has exceeded expectations. Every night has seen the people of Mill Hill go home happy. That is the payoff.

As Kerry at The Hammers likes to keep in good terms with the neighbours, sadly we had to wrap up at 11pm. As I thanked the band, I let the crowd in on a little secret. 30 years ago, my band did a gig there on December 21st 1985. It was a momentus night for me in many ways. Misdemeanours drummer, Graham was in the band and organised the gig. We played with a band called Soldier Bike, who were highly rated at the time. The place was packed to the rafters. the plan was to try and turn The Hammers into a regular music venue and this would have happened if the Landlord hand't been replaced.  Back on that night, I said "It would be great to get a Reggae band up here" The friend I was working towards making this happen, said "Reggae in Mill Hill, your mad, no one would come to that!". I said "I bet you £5 that it would be packed out" and the deal was signed. I told this little story and thanked the audience for belatedly winning me a fiver.

At the end, Joe got the full rock star treatment. Selfies with the crowd, autographs, signing boobs (well I made the last one up!). Before Joe went on I announced that they were the best Reggae band this side of Jamaica. A Jamaican guy came up to me and said "Man, that is a big claim". I said "If you don't agree at the end, I'll buy you a pint". At the end, he came up beaming. he said "Your money is safe brother". What a night.

And then we had to break down the gear. Getting a stage, 3 guitar amps, a bass amp, a Keyboard amp, a drum kit, a PA, four monitors and a DJ station into the van was a task in itself. This was done by 2am. Van loaded and returned safely to the studio (with special thanks to Dan, Jenni and Gerry), I headed up to the Mill Hill Kebab House for my traditional post festival 3am kebab. Very tasty it was too.

And that friends is the festival, done and dusted. Well it's not quite for this blog. There will be one more installment, where I detail all of the planning that went into it and the aftermath.

But until then, thanks so much for your support. We estimate 2,000 people attended the entire 9 days. We hope you enjoyed it as a much as we did.



 

The Mill Hill Music Festival - Rog T's Festival Diary - Day 8 - The Boss at Mill Hill Golf Club

Day 8, The Boss at The Mill Hill Golf club. Where has the time gone? The festival seems to have flown by. Today was the first time we've done an outdoor gig at MHGC. We arrived at 1pm with a 1pm with a PA system. The sky was dank grey. The first job was to make a bit of weather and clear the skies!

Having done this, Stuart and myself set about building the PA system. As this went on, my festival colleagues attended to building the stage and setting up gazebos.

We then took delivery of cable ramps from HSS, necessary to get the PA cables from the stage to the mixing desk. These were laid. The next task was constructing a fence. I departed to the studio, I have an album to record. I returned at 4pm and set up the DJ station and got some music going.

The band showed up at 5pm. They had their pown sound guy, so I would semi get a night off. I would be doing the sound for the support act Aaron Gold, a local singer songwriter. I am used to my crew on such events. I always find watching other peoples crews a mixture of fascinating and horrifying. My guys have a set methodology for doing things. Other crews have a different way of doing things and this can be a bit disconcerting. The Boss set up and sounded good. When he finshed his soundcheck, I then soundchecked Aaron and then played music as the punters arrived.

Aaron was just about to go on when we noticed a speaker had  gone down. A mad panic, search for cables etc and eventally we found a replacement. Aaron took the stage 10 minutes late and played a superb short set of acoustic music.

Then The Boss Stepped up. Initially there were sound problems. His crew were not familiar with our PA and so there were feedback issues for the first few songs. Sound Engineering is a complicated task. There is always some helpful soul to tell you to "turn down the mic". What they don't realise is that for a stage PA, there are 16 mics and four sets of independently controlled speakers. Anyone of these mics and speaker combinations could be the issue so there are 16 X 16 X 16 sets of options to rule out. That is why using unfamiliar gear is a problem. By half way thru the show, the sound guy had got to grips. By the end, the whole place was rocking.

Many people said that the night was brilliant. One group of Springsteen nuts said it was the best gig they'd seen apart from the man himself! Happy punters =  a good gig. The golf club is a great venue and we'll definately be back if they let us!

We used our largest PA and full light rigs. So it was a long break down. The gig finished at 11pm and we left at 1am. Notes for self for the next festival. Bring more working lighting. Allow more time for PA soundcheck if band use own engineer. Bring cable tester, screwdriver and soldering iron!


And so we rock on to the final night.

The Mill Hill Music Festival - Rog T's Festival Diary - Day 7 - 100 years of Jazz in 99 minutes

The Jazz Repartory Company perform 100 years of Jazz in 99 Minutes at the Hartley Hall

Day 7 - The Jazz Repertory company performing 100 years of Jazz in 99. As ever my day started with writing my daily diary and a bacon sandwich. Having got that out of the way I had some family and work business to attend to. I arrived at the studio at 12.30pm and had scheduled to spend until 3pm recording guitars on my bands new album. I got the boys at the studio to load up the Galaxy with the PA system for the event whilst this was going on. Recording out of the way, I drove around to the Hartley Hall with PA in tow. I took Tom from the studio with me to help set up and rig the PA.

Having had a full on week, I was very tired yesterday. Tiredness can be a problem and setting up the PA was not as straightforward for me as it should have been. I seemed to have a bit of a problem working out where to plug various cables in. Strange really since I've done this a thousand times. Anyway, once I'd got over my brain melt down (with a bit of help from Tom), everything fell into place. The band turned up as we finished rigging. Jazz musicians are a strange lot compared to Rock and Roll musicians. I often get the feeling that many would rather be living in the 1930's before PA systems were invented. Wheras Rock musicians want as much stage monitoring as possible and will work with a sound crew to ensure every instrument is mic'd and can be heard all around the hall, to Jazzers this is a heresy. They want the minimum in monitoring and the minimum in mic'ing of instruments. The view is very much that they want to "keep things authentic". So we simply mic'd up the piano, flute and the vocals. From a sound perspective, this tends to mean that the people at the back of the show get a very different show to the ones at the front, but that is how the artists like it. Having done the sound for Jazzers for many years, you do get used to it and it means you can put much less PA on the van.

Having established the requirements, we did a quick sound check. The main concern of the band was that I was putting too much reverb on everything. I explained that there was none at all and it was the acoustics of the hall. I invited the band to have a look and they seemed to believe me then. I explained that I'd done the sound for plenty of jazzers and know that they don't like reverb. In truth in a Hall like Hartley Hall, unless you have Duane Eddy on guitar, there isn't much need for echo and reverb. I was actually very pleased with the sound. The piano player was none too happy with the in house piano at Hartley Hall, describing it as "an Aldi" job. It certainly isn't a Steinway! I suspect that for the early years of Jazz, it was actually pretty authentic though! Many early Jazz bands would have played many a fine set on the worlds worst piano's (but that isn't really the point). I suspect that if we are mad enough to do another festival, we may hire in a piano if required. Having sorted the sound, I gave Gerry a hand with the lights. I suspect that like me, Gerry is tired and was having a similar brain melt down.  He was having issues with the light mixing desk. It seemed insurmountable. I suggested a reboot of the mixing desk. Lighting is a dark art to me (no pun intended). Anyway, Gerry figured out a workaround. We then worked to establish the spotlights were in the right place. Gerry retreated to the light mixing room and I did some final checks and tidy ups. Gerry then came down, beaming and said "sorted". Like me, he'd recovered from his brain meltdown.

The audience were about to enter and all of a sudden, Gerry looked anguisged. We'd forgotten to put the festival banners up at the side of the stage. So as people entered, Gerry was up the ladder, hanging banners. The show was the brainchild of Brian Peerless, who books our headline jazz gigs. Back in September, when we were discussing options, Brian proposed the show and it is fair to say not all of the committee initially bought into the idea. I tend to trust Brian in matters Jazz, but there was some discussion whether a headliner act may be better (ie an artist with a higher profile). As the event was the first to sell out, I think we can say Brians judgement was vindicated. In the planning stage, we have lively discussions. If you are running a festival, there will be disagreements along the way. The secret is to settle the arguments, then get behind the plan. This is something our committee is brilliant at. No matter how many toys fly out of the pram, they all get put back and the baby gets to the nursery safe and sound. For anyone reading this considering running a festival, please do not underestimate the strains and tensions of the journey. I am sure that there are times when we all felt like strangling each other. Since our first meeting last July, there's been plenty of heated arguments. I am sure I am the most difficult of all for my fellow committee members to deal with, but we all recognise that we have a common purpose and we are working for the good of the festival.

You may wonder why I mention this now? Well because by the time the gig had finished, we were in a state of high elation. The band were absolutely brilliant. They brought the house down and got a spontanious standing ovation. The journey of Jazz from it's start in 1897 to the present day was awesome. I must say that The Jazz Repartory Company are not only brilliant players, they put on a proper show. They entered via the back of the hall playing as a marching band and exiting the same way, in triumph. As a musician, there was no way I could not be blown away by their skill, imagination and performance. I've been attending the MHMF snce it's inception and been on the committee since 2001 (the fifth festival). I can honestly say that as far as I am concerned, this was the jazz gig I've most enjoyed. I suspect that for buffs who love a certain period or style, the mix would be too eclectic. A show with Armstrong, Ellington as well as Weather Report may be a bridge too far for the purist. but as someone who loves a great show, I was blown away.

In short, nights like last night make all of the stress thoroughly worthwhile. The gig was packed, it was the first festival event to sell out. We even had the Mayor of Barnet, Mr Mark Shooter in attendance. I know Mark from my other life as a blogger writing about Barnet. He's a nice bloke and he thoroughly enjoyed himself. The festival is not political, it is about bringing our community  together. I hope Mark goes back to his friends in the council and tells them that music is a key feature of our Borough. I also hope that it helps make the case that we need to preserve our music venues. Since I joined the committee, Mill Hill has lost six venues that the festival has held gigs at. That we could have such a great festival is amazing. However, the down side is that we've no venue in Mill Hill East. Both the Mill Pub and the Railway Engineer have been demolished. Both hosted brilliant nights. As a community we need places to join together.

Anyway, as soon as the gig finished, it was back to the breakdown of the PA. Mics off, cables coiled, speakers off stands, Mic stands folded up. DJ station stowed, Multicore packed away. All of this then had to be lugged to the van and dropped back into the studio store. Then back to Hartley Hall, to get the piano off the stage. I grabbed Tom from the studio to assist, in return for a lift home!

That done, I headed off for a kebab and a quiet beer at home. To chill out after events, I've been watching the Sky box set of Series 1 of True Detective before bed. Sadly last night, I'd run out of episodes. Lord only knows what I'll do tonight.

The Mill Hill Music Festival - Rog T's Festival Diary - Day 6 - Anita Wardell & The Hermitage Quartet with Carola Darwin

Day 6. The festival is flying by! Once again I had a relatively late start, writing this blog. For the two events, I had no particular role, but for the day 7-9, I have a full on job, running three PA's in three days, so the morning was spent on calls discussing logistics. Numerous texts and calls with Gerry about cable dimensions for cable rampings (necessary for the outdoor gig at Mill Hill Golf club, where we need to get a multicore from the stage to the PA desk). Calls & texts to bands to confirm soundcheck times and last minute checks on PA systems and with our driver Stuart, who will deliver various equipment. That was pretty much the morning taken up. I also had a crisis at work, where various issues cropped up and meetings had to be had.

Once again, I went for a sauna to collect my thoughts. As is always the way, when you are stressed out and simply need to relax in your own company, someone always wants to talk to you. So I am lying in the sauna calming my mind and another gym member walks in and starts to tell me how he's a born again Christian and how Jesus has saved his life three times. Lets just say I wasn't particularly in the mood to be invited to his church. Having a rather wicked sense of humour, I could only wonder how many people get murdered when they tell the wrong person at the wrong time how Jesus saved their life! There are many phrases in the English language I dislike, but born again Christian is near the top. I resent the implication that such people consider themselves "premier league". For the record, I would describe myself as an extremely bad Roman Catholic, if pressed. If anyone is to proseletysed by me, it will because they will see stuff I do and think, thats a good thing to do (not that there is too much chance of that), not because I've collared them in the sauna and spent half an hour boring the pants off them. You may be wondering what this is all about and what it has to do with the festival? Well the answer is simple. Everyone was asking me why I looked so pissed off. They assumed something terrible had happened. It hadn't, I'd just had a day of it. My wife tells me that when I'm in a bad mood, I look very unapproachable, so I do apologise if I looked grumpy.

Anyway, back from the gym and I had a few more tasks at the studio. At 5pm, I went up to St Pauls. I didn't have a specific role to perform, but there is always "stuff to do". So I rocked up. The artists were practicing and sounded fantastic. Soprano Carola Darwin is the great granddaughter of Charles Darwin. I was contemplating the unwanted conversation earlier in the day. I suspect that the great man would hold a far more interesting conversation than "I had a bad leg and my preacher prayed for me and it got better, it was a miracle, why don't you come along to our church and see for yourself".

I helped Gerry and Dan put up some bunting and some mood lighting, then went home to collect my daughter. She volunteered to help with the raffle at the the Mill Hill Jazz club. The Jazz club runs itself, so it doesn't really require any help from the festival. We just advertise it. We run a raffle at the event to help with the costs of printing etc. My daughter has been helping with raffles this year. I also brought up a stack of festival brochures. If you get given one, please have a look through. All of the advertisers have supported the festival and helped us with our costs. Just for example, the insurance was over £600. There  are many such costs which we have to cover. We are a not for profit organisation, but we have to cover costs. We also have to go into the next festival with a surplus, so we can pay up front costs.

Both events were reasonably well attended and enjyed by the audience. Anita Wardell did a fine set of Jazz, ably assisted by Barry Green on Piano, Dario De-Leche on bass and John Scott on drums. I bumped into an old school friend, Clive Blass at the show. He was with his friend Lauren Lucille, who is a talented Jazz singer in her own right. It turned out that Laurens mum is friends with Anita Wardell, and this resulted in an impromptu duo between the two. For me, this was the highlight of the show. Lauren is playing in her own right at the Jazz club on 5th August, check it out.

I finished the evening with a tasty takeaway from the Mill Hill Tandoori. There's only three days of music left. This festival has flown by. I think all of the events have been fantastic. It has been great to see so many people at multiple concerts, many people have come up and told me this is the best festival ever. Thank you all for your support.

The Mill Hill Music Festival - Rog T's Festival Diary - Day 5 - Opera Up Close

Day 5, the mid point of the festival. The Barber of Seville by Opera Up Close at Hartley Hall.

Opera Up Close - The Barber of Seville at The Hartley Hall (Pic Richard Logue)

So I started the day as I start every day of the festival. I get up and I write my festival diary for your enjoyment. I am quite surprised at how many people read this and how seriously they take it. I guess not everyone gets my sense of humour. I've had a few comments about rain dances following Mondays post. They clearly weren't reading too closely as the whole point was that we needed sunshine, not the heavens to open for the Rising Sun Jazz Lunch. Anyway, the point I was making was that you can make the best plans in the world, but not everything is in your control. To quote MacMillan "Events" happen. We can't control them, so we just have to cope as best we can. We think we are in control of our destiny, but how the day looks at the end of the day is often not at all how it looked when we get up. But more of that later.

Another packed house at Hartly Hall (Pic Richard Logue)

So, as I said I started the day writing my diary here. I then spent about an hour doing all of the various plugging we do on Social Media, trying to rustle up an audience. This is somethiing we've done rather well with. On our own official figures, we've now passed 1,000 people at events! Now for Glastonbury, 1,000 would not even be an impressive queue for the loo, but for a small festival like ours, where venues can only hold 100-200 people, this is a great turnout. With presold tickets, we are we on course for between 1,800-2,000 people in total at all events. At our last festival in 2013, we lost money and attendences were low for several key events. This time, several have sold out and all have exceeded our expectations. We have a large mailing list, we distrubute leaflets at local stations, supermarkets and High Streets, we use local press, twitter and facebook and blogs. We even got a plug on the Robert Elms on BBC London show on Saturday! All of this has worked well for this festival. Hard work does pay off.

Then I had some business issues etc to deal with. I got to the studio at around 1pm. This was not for the festival, but to record some acoustic guitar tracks for the album I am recording withe the False Dots. This proved problematical for me, as I'd dropped a concrete block on my thumb on Saturday and it has become infected. It is not particularly easy holding a plectrum with a sore thumb, but hey ho, that's rock and roll.

At 3.30pm I had a meeting at the studio with "The Boss", the Bruce Springsteen tribute band, who are appearing on Saturday night. They were rehearsing at the studios, so we took the opportunity to show their sound guy the PA for Saturday and to answer questions. Then I made my way around to the Hartley Hall at around 4.30pm to check in with the team. They had been on site since 10am and I was greeted by two rather jaded members of the committee. It turned out that the designated stage mananger had a family crisis and a last minute dep had been brought in. Various props etc had not arrived, so our committee had to visit B&Q and build props etc. Then they were told that the piano was needed on stage. All of this meant that we were running very late. I arrived and we spent the final hour adjusting lighting. A special hats off to Gerry, who did a diamond job. As if by magic, everything fell into place just as the doors opened. Gerry and Dan had a long, tiring day, but itw as worth it. The Hall was sold out and the audience loved the show.

It all finished at around 9.45pm. There was a bit of breakdown to do, but as no one required the hall until our next gig, seating etc could be left. I was able to nip over to Prezzo and join my family for a late dinner and a beer. All in all another successful, if stressful day. It seems every day of the festival has "events". Saturday night it was noisy aircon, Sunday it was rain, Monday it was a powercut, Tuesday it was a family crisis for a stage manager. The joys of being a festival organiser!

The Mill Hill Music Festival - Day 4 - Rog T's Festival Diary - Shir at Mill Hill Synagogue

Shir perform at Mill Hill Synagogue

Day four of the Mill Hill Music Festival. I had a nice lie in, after a late night on Sunday. Although the festival takes over your life for a week, there is still a business to run and a family to feed. So the morning was spent attending to this business. I'm taking a wild guess that you are not that interested in the details of the quote I got for a new flat roof (if I am wrong drop me an email!). So after my obligatary lunchtime sauna and jacuzzi chill out session, the fun began. I turned up at the studio at 3pm. For me, today was one of the "biggies". For the festival, us committee members all have our own events that we take special ownership of. For Brian Peerless, this is the headline Jazz events (Brian is a Jazz promoter of note). Dan Bleich is the Opera Champion. He brought Opera to the festival and it has proven a massive success. Clare (my other half) is in the BBC Elstree concert band and so put her heart and soul into that gig. Joan Scannell is involved with the Salvation Army band as her sons play in it, so Joan did the donkey work for them.

 I tend to look after the more popular music events and sorted out the JJ & The Ukettes for the Adam and Eve, The Dhol Company for the Day of the Raj, Shir at the Mill Hill Synagogue, The Boss Bruce Springsteen show at the Golf club, and Joe Angel / The Misdemeanours at the Hammers. Of course all of the committee help at all events and with the planning, but we handle the liaison with artists and staging requirements as lead on these events. Generally the events I put on are locally based artists, who use Mill Hill Music Complex studios and I believe are good enough to take part in the festival. In general they are at more popular (for want of a better bucket to put them in) end of the music scale. Ivor Goldberg and Maurice Chernick of Shir have a long standing association with the studios. Ivor runs the Rock United music workshops for young people at the studios and has done for many years. Maurice has also been a studio customer for years. He was the first band I recorded, when we first set up a recording studio. His sons are both talented musicians and I've seen them grow up, coming down to play drums and rehearse with their bands. There is no greater gift a parent can give than a love of music to their children. So as you can imagine I consider both Ivor & Maurice to be top class guys all round.

The Klezmer aspect of the Mill Hill Music Festival has been present since the days before I was involved. It is always a popular and well supported event, but this was the first time we've actually held the event at the Synagogue. Local people will know the synagogue has recently been rebuilt and it is now a superb venue. The synangogue were very keen to become involved in the festival and we were very pleased to have them as well. I've done the sound for artists at every venue in Mill Hill (as well as other venues all over the country). It is fair to say that the Synagogue has the best acoustics of any. It has been designed to be a great venue. There is no nasty ring in the room and the environment is very comfortable.

So anyway, back to the day. At 3pm, I arrived at the studio and Stuart and Tom helped with the load up. Yesterday was the first day where we'd used PA4 - our biggest sound system. The hall is the largest we've done and so we needed a bit of welly! This is not because Shir play loudly, but it means we need headroom in the system. We also needed a lot of channels on the mixing desk. Anyone who has ever set up a 3KW PA with monitors will know that there is a lot of lugging to do. Getting the sound is often the easy bit! Fellow committee member Gerry Keane was on hand. Gerry was looking after the lights. I've known Gerry since I was 4. We attended FCHS and St Vincents school together, so it is fair to say we can work togther pretty well. For gigs like this, Gerry handles lighting and I handle sound, but we work together as a team and I think we do a fine job.

By 5pm, we'd shifted the PA around the corner and set up. Stuart is an excellent technician. He ran his own studios for years and is a professional musician. Ivor and the gang showed up. The sound check was relatively painless. The lighting was another matter. We bought some new equipment and it wasn't playing ball. Gerry had spent all day at home trying to sort the issues out (we'd used the gear at the Day of the Raj and had to use one bank of lights in auto mode). Gerry thought he had it in the bag after a days hard slog, but the system was not behaving. I felt really sorry for Gerry, checking cables, re-reading the manual. Just before the end of the sound check, he suddenly looked a bit happier. The polarity switch on the lighting desk had been switched incorrectly. If I was in the trenches, I'd want Gerry next to me. He is nothing if not dogged in his efforts to fix any problem.

The soundcheck finished at 6.55 and at 7pm on the dot, the doors opened. Ivor had considerately put together a playlist on his iPhone. A few last minute checks. The event received massive support. Over 180 people turned up and the hall was full. For me, one of the beauties of the festival is I get to see all manner of artists, in all manner of settings that I wouldn't normally see. I doubt I'd ever have given a second glance at a Klezmer night at the Mill Hill Synangogue, if I'd not been an organiser. As a musician and a music lover, I am open to new styles, but I'd probably have assumed that it "wasn't my thing".

At 7.30pm, fellow committee member Jenni took to the stage to welcome Shir. It is fair to say that Jenni was a tad nervous standing up in front of the massed crowds. She did a fine job though, and the band were up and ready to go.  Having seen Shir on  a few occasions, I also know what I'd have missed! They are brilliant musicians. Ivor is a top notch guitarist. Much of what he played had elements of the best of Spanish, Eastern European and even Latin styles. Maurice is a great clarinetist, Piotr Jordon on violin adds a true Eastern feel to the music. Poitr didn't appear with the band when they last played at the festival. He has certainly added a new dimension to the band. Steve on double bass and Ronen and drums add a solid and grooving rythm section. Ivor has an encylopedic knowledge of the Klezmer and Ladino music genres and his patter between numbers gives a great insight into the history of the music styles. In short, it was a great show and the audience went home happy.

Afterwards I spoke to Ivor. The band normally play at Barmitzvah's and weddings. As such they are a bit of a sideshow and they play a set appropriate to the event. Playing a concert where they are the focus means they can explore areass of the music that you wouldn't necessarily want the bride and groom to have the first dance to. The band clearly relished the chance to be in the spotlight, the main attraction. Unlike some gigs I've been to recently, the audience were also very respectful whilst thoroughly enjoying the show. There was no chit chat as the band played, but as soon as they were encouraged to join in on the choruses, they brought the house down! For a band, nothing could be better.

In short the evening couldn't have run smoother. The band sold a stack of CD's, the audience went home happy. What could possibly go wrong? Just as I was chatting to Ivor and curling up leads, the lights went off. I shouted for them to be put back on. They shouted back that they hadn't turned them off. It turned out that half of Mill Hill was experiencing a power cut! Have you ever tried to dismantle a PA system in the semi dark? Fortunately for us, there was emergency lighting in the hall. This is good enough to get a crowd out, but for breaking down a large PA, it was nightmare. Leads have to go into specific bags. When you can't see them, it is a tad more challenging. Even worse, Clare had gone off to get my dinner from the Chinese restaurant. No din dins for me! I'd been looking forward all night to a nice portion of Kung Po Chicken and a spring roll.

The show finished at 10pm and we were clear by 11pm. Back to the studio for a quick unload. Fifteen minutes later we were done. Carl and Tom at the Studio helped and I was on my way home. I knew that dinner was off the cards. I felt a bit sorry for myself. I walked in the door and Clare announced that dinner was in the oven. I opened it up and there was a nice big plate of chinese food. My good lady had dug out the Iceland equivalent and very tasty it was. If you've ever been involved with music, you'll know just how good a late night treat is after a long day.  By midnight I was in bed and I slept like a baby!

Just a final word about the festival so far. Thus far, over 800 people have attended festival events. We've had the best ever ticket sales and the best response. I've been running the #SaveLondonMusic campaign to protect live music venues and to ensure we have a live music scene. It is clear to me that there is a huge appetite for live music in Mill Hill. For us it is such a pleasure to see things going so well.

The Mill Hill Music Festival - Day 3 - Rog T's Festival Diary - Jazz and Bhangra!

Day three of the Mill Hill Music Festival. Guess what? I started the day with a lie in! I didn't even wake up until ten past nine. I normally wake up between 6.30 and 7am, so I guess I must have been cream crackered! A slice of toast and a cup of green tea and then up to the Rising Sun for the Ron Russell Band and the Jazz lunch. As this was an open air gig, the first concern was the weather. The omens were not good. The sky was grey and the rain was falling. I'll let you in on a little secret. My Dad was raised in the outback of Australia and he always told us as kids that a witchdoctor had taught him to "make weather". For many years, there used to be an annual garden fete in May at St Josephs College on Lawrence Street. My Dad always claimed he was in charge of the weather. Over the many years this took place, it was never cancelled due to rain. As a kid, I was always impressed by this. Shortly before he died, I went for a curry with him (I was 24 at the time). For some reason the subject came up and I asked him if an Aboriginal witch doctor had really taught him to make weather. He then confided that this was indeed true and he told me the secret. He explained the process and said there were only two rules. One was that it must be for the universal good and the second was that you can't make rain go away or the sun shine, but you can defer it. If you stop the rain for the Universal good, you will at some point within a few weeks get absolutely soaked in an unexpected shower. All you've done is shifted it, so you have to pay the consequences.

As you can tell I was raised to be highly superstitious, but as a festival organiser, I had no choice but to follow the procedure. Now you may think "What has all this nonsense got to do with running a music festival?" Well quite a lot as the Weather was a fundamental prerequisite to holding the gig, as The Rising Sun has no space for an indoors gig. I arrived on site at 10.45am. The sky was still grey and the rain was coming down. I assurred all that the weather would be fine, but they all looked at me as if I was an idiot. Our first task was to build the gazebo's to protect the band. I was then asked if I could get some carpet for the band gazebo, so I had to return to the studio and pick one up. I returned at 11.30, the rain was still coming down. Although I had complete faith that it would clear, no one else had any faith at all. So Gerry was dispatched to Argos to buy two more gazebo's. We also arranged tables and umbrellas so as many people as possible were covered. At around noon, the rain stopped. We then dried down all the tables and chairs. The Rising Sun had decided to cancel their barbeque and do kitchen food and there were frantic preparations going on. The pub kindly provided a complimentary pasta dish for band and organisers.

The Ron Russell band set up in the rain

Having been fed, put up gazebos, run power to the band gazebo and gazebos for the public, we had the opportunity to enjoy the event. The band provided their own PA system, which meant nothing for me to do. Committee member Jenni runs raffles to help cover costs and so she was busy but the rest of us could relax and have  a drink and enjoy a rather excellent band. As I'd promised all concerned, by around 1.30 the skies had cleared and the sun was now beating down, in fact it was a glourious afternoon. All too soon it was over.  As with all other events, the turnout was excellent. Itw as unticketed and free entry, so we don't know how many attended, but I counted over 100 people. Whilst the rest of the team had to break down gazebos, I had to return to the studios to prepare a PA system for the evening event.

And then the sun came out!

At the studio, I got my boys to load up the Galaxy with Pa and lights.We arrived at the Day of the Raj for the Bangra night at 5pm and immediately set the PA system up. We have bought some new lights and Gerry was using the Raj event as a chance to learn the rig. For the event we had the amazing DHOL drummers of The DHOL Company and the amazing dancing of K from www.lovethebeat.co.uk

The DHOL drummers arrive

We set the PA and lights up and the band showed up. I've not seen DHOL drummers before and hadn't realised how loud they were. It was agreed that we'd send Dan from the committee to the studios and pick up some earplugs to distribute to anyone who might find the band too loud!

Once again it was another packed event. Romel, owner of the DOTR told us he'd had to turn away ten bookings for tables.The show was brilliant. I've never seen DHOL drummers before, but they are brilliant.

Bangra dancing from K from LOVETHEBEAT

The show started, it comprised of two sets of drumming from The DHOL Company and two sets of dancing from the amazing K. All of this accompanied by some rather tasty curry from the Raj. Once the fun was over, we were able to tuck in ourselves. A suitable way to enjoy the festival.

This was a new event and a new venue in the festival calendar. As MC I asked the audience if they'd like it at the next festival. The answer was a resounding"YES".

Once dinner had been had, we had to break down the lights and PA and that was that. Day 3 done!

The Mill Hill Music Festival - Day 2 - Rog T's Festival Diary - BBC Elstree Concert Band at Hartley Hall

The BBC Elstree Concert Band at Hartley Hall (pic courtesy of Richard Logue)

Having enjoyed a highly successful first day of the festival and having shared a bottle of wine at home after with friends, I was rather surprised to wake up at 6.30am, feeling as fresh as a daisy and in the mood to write yesterdays blog in this series. It may interest you (or it may not), to hear someone asked my last night "Why I bother writing a festival blog, because no one is interested". The simple answer is that actually people are. I had over 500 blog hits yesterday and over 100 people clicked on the link from twitter or facebook pages. It was clear to us from ticket sales, that this years festival is of much interest to the people of Mill Hill. Whilst as a blogger it is great to get hits, this series isn't really written so much for my readers. It is my way of ensuring that I have a log. In a years time when we start planning the festival for 2017, I'll read all of these and all of the previous festival diaries again. That way, I remember all of the issues, all of the things to cover and what worked well. It also helps me plan the logisitics. If you are organising a festival, nothing beats experience, but you can only gain maximim value if you write it all down at the time. Having said that, I do try and make it sound as interesting as possible, as I do realise that people are interested.

As my wife was playing with her band (BBC Elstree Concert Band) in the evening, we had to arrange food and drinks for the band. So a trip down to Iceland to buy cakes, water and snacks and arrange delivery with them. I must confess, much as I miss Woolworths in the Broadway, Iceland are cheap and provide a great delivery service. I think that between Marks, Iceland and the various convenience stores, Mill Hill is well served for grocers! Mind you I only ever buy sausages at Cooksleys. Providing refreshments for the band is a vital part of any festival. Some musicians travel for miles and get home late. They should be looked after and the festival try to do this as best we can.

At 10.00, I made my way down to the studios. We had PA systems to unload, from the previous nights gig at the Adam and Eve. As the boss of a PA hire company, I am lucky that I just drove the gear down and my team unloaded it. We had left a stage at the Adam and Eve and they'd insisted we had to pick it up at 11am, so having stacked the PA, we took the BALLS bike club van to the Adam and Eve and picked the stage up at 11am.

My next engagement was to drop the stage off at the Hartley Hall at 4pm for the BBC Elstree Concert band. This gave me some down time. I used this to go to my gym and have a sauna and a relaxing session in the Jacuzzi. This may seem like a strange thing to mention in a festival diary, but as an organiser, with a full on schedule, it is important to plan rest and relaxation properly and this is part of my personal daily plan when possible.

I returned home at 2.30pm for lunch and then at 4pm, drove to the studio, picked up the BALLS van and dropped the stage at Hartley Hall. When I arrived, there was a mini crisis. Although we had risers for the band, there was no plinth for the conductor of the band. So it was a quick trip back to studios for concrete blocks and carpet. By the time this was all resolved, it was 6pm. My next job was to drive to Colindale to pick up the conductor of the band. He had a long journey. Having a car waiting, meant he made band call.

Once the conductor had been dropped off, I then dropped the car home. Then I did a terrible thing! As I had 20 minutes until my next duties, I snuck into the Mill Hill Services club and had a pint! I watched the last 20 mins of the Ireland vs Scotland game and had a chat with a few mates about football. Such little breaks keep you sane. I didn't have specific duties, I the ambled up as the doors were about to open and acted as doorman for the main entrance. I was also being front of house man for Gerry Keane who was managing the lights. As it was, there was nothing  to manage. About 180 people turned up for the concert. It was a spectacular success. The band are awesome and the compare gave a witty and informative introduction to each piece. They are playing The Ark Theatre, Elstree Elstree on Saturday 27th June for Armed Forces Day, I can thoroughly recommend them.

At the end of the concert a very pleasant little old lady came up to me and said "Thank you so much, that was lovely, this is the first time I've been out in the evening this year". Little things like that affirm why I do this. When the band finished, we had to stack away the chairs and sort a few bits and pieces out. Lucy and Dave at the Hartley Hall are the nicest people you could possibly want running a venue. It is a real pleasure to work with them. The Vicar, Fr Stephen, had a chat with me afterwards. He is one of the new generation of CofE vicars and is doing a fine job. Sometimes when people talk about organised religion in the UK, they are dismissive, without realising just how important churches are as venues and social hubs (but I think that can be explored later in a specific blog). I would just say that without the Hartley Hall and St Michaels Church, Mill Hill would be a much less lovely place to live (and I'm not CofE so I guess you can take me as unbiased).

When the hall breakdown was complete, I adjourned with friends to The Bridge Pub for a quick pint, and then off to the Day of The Raj for a very late dinner (11pm). We needed to talk logistics for tonight (Sunday) gig at the Raj with The DHOL Company (Traditional Indian Drummers).

All that sorted we finally got home at 1am, a job well done!

The Mill Hill Music Festival - Day 1 - Rog T's Festival Diary

Pic courtesy of Richard Logue

So it is here. A year after we started planning it, the 11th Mill Hill Music Festival has finally arrived. As one of the festival organising committee, we've had an average of one meeting a month since last September. The first thing was to secure venues for the events, then we booked the bands, drew up the publicity material.We've stood in the rain dishing out leaflets, written press releases for the local papers and plastered Mill Hill with banners. We've organised insurance, ordered the drinks for events, ordered staging etc, booked PA systems, done planning visits to venues and worked out artist requirements. We've ordered buffets for the artists, posted leaflets and tickets, set up a website, facebook page and twitter account. And now after all this planning, last night it all started.


And after all that, it is finally here. The festival kicked off with The Hendon Band of the Salvation Army at Hartley Hall. As we had two events and I was running the show at The Adam and Eve, I missed the opening concert. My involvement was limited to dropping off two stage risers. My wife, who is festival treasurer (it may not surprise regular readers to learn she's the one who is "good with money") was on the door at the Hartley Hall. The reports back were fantastic. The band were on top form. We had 125 tickets sold, which is a good total. If ever you get the chance to see the band, they are absolutely brilliant musicians and the set is varied and highly enjoyable.

I however missed all that. At 2pm I arrived at Mill Hill Music Complex, my studio business. We were supplying the PA system for the event at the Adam and Eve, so I had to load it up into my Ford Galaxy. Well I say that, actually I drank tea and manned the phones, whilst two of my excellent staff, Tom and Jack did all the work. Being the boss does have the odd benefit. We then loaded the risers onto the BALLS Motorcycle club van, which they kindly loaned the festival. The BALLS motorcycle club are the group of bikers who drink in the Railway Pub in Mill Hill. I think its fair to say that many people see them and think they are a fearsome bunch, but they are the nicest group of people you could meet. They have regular events and raise lots of money for charity and are always willing to help if there is a good cause locally. Loaning the van for the festival events saves us a small fortune and means that there is more money in the pot for promotion and staging events. Such local support makes the festival possible. Another noteworthy supporter are Mill Hill Wines, who act as our ticket office. They don't take any commission on tickets. I hope that festival goers buy the odd bottle to support the shop as they take no commission. It is really important to support these local businesses.

At 3pm, with the stages loaded, Jack jumped in the van with me and we drove to Hartley Hall to drop off the stage. This was a quick lift and drop. We then drove to the Adam and Eve and dropped off the stage. With this we drove back and dropped off the BALLS van and picked up the Galaxy. We returned to the Adam and Eve and started to assemble the PA. I've done this thousands of times in my career, but no two gigs are ever the same. The original plan for the Adam and Eve was to have the gig outside, weather permitting. Sadly the weather did not permit, so inside we were. By 5.30pm, the PA was assembled, the lighting rig was set up and we were ready for the band to arrive for soundcheck.

The band turned up at 6.30pm and we spent about 45 minutes getting the soundcheck sorted out. I am pleased to report that I was rather pleased with the sound and the band seemed happy as well. Having concluded the soundcheck, I tucked into a tasty burger and had a refreshing pint of shandy. One of the down sides of such gigs is the fact you have to stay sober and have your wits about you, not least as you have to do a lot of driving.

JJ and the Ukettes at the Adam & Eve (Pic Richard Logue)

At 8.30pm sharp (well as sharp as it ever is with musicians in Mill Hill), the band started. JJ and the Ukettes are a four piece, I like to think of them as Mill Hills answer to ABBA ( a bit better looking and a bit more talented though!). They play an eclectic mix of music, includingh ABBA, The Kinks, Eddie Grant, Buddy Holly and The Everley Brothers. They even threw in a rousing version of The Wild Rover.

The band performed two sets, and got a great reception. They ended with two storming encores. Being a talented band and being experienced of playing live at the venue, it was an easy night for me on the desk. My festival co-organiser Jenni Bond turned up and ran a very successful raffle. These help the festival cover its admin costs, of which there are many (for example we spent over £600 on stamps for mailouts).  At around 9.45 the rest of the team turned up from Hartley Hall for a well earned pint and a chat.

All  too soon the gig was over and it was down to the graft of breaking down the PA and getting everything on the van for the next day. At 12.30, we all departed, a job well done. I managed to acquire a bevvy of friends, who jumped in my car and came home with me. When I got home, Mrs T informed me she hadn't eaten and was hungry. All we had was a few eggs, so I made her a fried egg sarnie with brown sauce. Perfect post gig nutrition. We'll have a few more such meals this week!
We ended up having a couple of glasses of wine in my garden and an early night, hitting the sack at 2.30am. 

I awoke at 6.45am, head spinning with all the things I have to do today. Onwards and upwards to the Hartley Hall for the BBC Elstree Concert Band. Mrs T has a night off organising tonight. She plays clarinet with the band. As for me, I am just the gofer tonight. Onwards and upwards

A quick note  -  Mill Hill Village Youth FC are holding a fun day at their ground in Burtonhole Lane on Sunday at noon - http://www.pitchero.com/clubs/millhillvillagefc/calendar/event/2015-awards-bbq-205675 - There will be a barbeque and plenty of fun events. Mill Hill is the place to be!