Bangkok Acoustic Guitar Celebration 2010

[howto]

Many thanks to Topah for the heads up back on 2010-09-08...

that same day I purchased 6 tickets 3'rd row center stage, excellent seats.

This was to be a family event, family of five plus the nanny.

This being the childrens 'first concert' was influenced by

the excellent acoustic guitar artists.

The two boys have been learning/practicing guitar for 18 months.

Thought it great for them to have this experience.

So we've been waiting seven weeks for the event.

It was finally last night, Halloween.

And it was both a 'Trick and Treat'.

The Treat:

The performing artist were superb...

Thak Lekkra, Roberto Uno, Sungha Jung, Andy McKee, Tommy Emmanuel

Unfortunately that in total covers the treat.

The Trick(s):

Tickets were radically expensive at 3000 baht each,

18,000 baht my total purchase, or 600 USD.

Without a doubt the most expensive concert I have ever attended.

The Centerpoint was just ok, just. Nothing to praise.

There are other venues far more suited for such an event.

I'm certain the sound engineer of this event

learned his 'sound engineering skills' in a Nana or Cowboy bar.

The sound was for <deleted>, and I'm being nice.

Massive booming bass, with reverb no less, totally overwhelmed

the tonal qualities of the harmonics, mids and highs.

The 'guitar slaps' were pounding solid walls of sound.

I'm not joking. I sincerely hope that he may be

looking for a new profession far away from a mixing board.

Finally, midway thru Andy McKee's performance,

some of us has had enough!!!

I and another patron, shouted to Andy to 'fix the sound'.

He heard us, and it was made so, but only fully after another song.

We then enjoyed Andy's final two songs of his set

with clarity of the instrument.

Another distraction,

the large video screen was about 1/2 second slow in response time.

Disconcerting to watch the artist/hear the music, then

look at the screen and see it lag to what one sees/hears.

Oh yeah, that 'source video' camcorder

(a large expensive broadcast quality Sony)

which was used to feed that large screen,

was positioned as such so that a unused mic stand's arm,

was exactly in the way of seeing the artist left hand

fingering / chording frets on the guitar neck.

That git operator would zoom in

on the artist's left hand working those frets,

and there was that dam_n mic stand arm

blocking the view of the 3~4th fret area.

Of course Somchai did not say or do anything to resolve this,

hel_l, truth be known, he probably did not even notice.

We've a break before Tommy Emmanuel begins his set,

while in the lobby I briefly met an organizer of the event,

a blond middle-aged man, European by his accent.

I quickly and clearly told him of my displeasure's,

his lame explanation was...

it sounds better where the sound board is and in the back.

Yeah sure it does bozo,

and if frogs had wings they wouldn't bump their ass when they jumped.

Well I dropped the issue, my 600 bucks was spent,

the concert sucked due to an incompetent 'engineer',

this is Thailand and I should have known better.

Didn't get to see Tommy,

-the children were weary

-tomorrow is Monday, a school day,

-we need to eat dinner and

-we've a drive of 75 Km to arrive home.

While on the way home I asked the children their opinion of the event,

they said '"was ok but the music was too loud"

and the 10 year old added "the bass was way too much".

And yes, the volume was too loud for the event/venue.

Yes, it could have been so very much better with so little effort.

//End rant!

My apologies for the distraction.