There is hope for return of town’s live music scene
Guidance for live music being rolled out in England has been announced.
Unfortunately, Scotland is still behind the curve with covid and, therefore, slightly behind those living south of the border, but it should be similar for us soon.
The press in England is reporting that the UK is the first major music market in Europe to unveil a roadmap for its live sector to return sometime this year.
So, what do the new guidelines look like?
Here are a few of the most important parts of the new rules that music venues have got to adhere to.
Promoters must set audience sizes at a maximum of 1,000 people or 50 per cent of a venue’s capacity, whichever is lower. Select indoor events can go up to 4,000 people.
You can have up to 50 per cent capacity for outdoor events.
Large outdoor seated venues, such as stadium gigs, where crowds can be safely distributed, will be allowed up to 10,000 people, or 25 per cent of total seated capacity.
Here in Britain, just like in most countries around the world, the local and touring level of live bands came to a sudden halt last March as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Since then, all music venues have been mothballed.
To keep everything open and taking us all back to normality, the scientists have published four key conditions which centres around the level of vaccinations, infection rates, hospital admissions and new variants of coronavirus.
This all means simply that all the numbers have to at least stay at the present levels or come down.
If the numbers go in the wrong direction, don’t wake me up. I think I will just go to bed until I’m told it’s OK to set foot out the door.
I remember raising my hopes last year and, as quick as a drum roll, it all began to quickly fade away.
The cancellation of the Glastonbury festival for a second year running came as a shock to me. The news suggested that live music would once again be off limits in 2021.
But the success of the UK’s vaccination programme has produced cautious optimism the sector can bounce back in the second half of the year.
Check out the Facebook pages and see what is on offer from The Bungalow, Rocknrollas and Callum’s Cavern.
They are announcing new gigs every week and it is all looking good building up a new and exciting programme of music.
Here is a heads up. If the numbers are restricted, it is advisable to buy tickets now for upcoming gigs as there are fewer tickets available than normal and will sell out quickly.
If the live local music scene could get going, it could be the shot in the arm that we all need to bounce back from this pandemic.
If last year is anything to go by, any return to normality for live music will be behind the rest of the economy.
As music venues need ticket numbers to pay for live bands, some leading figures in the music business have lobbied politicians for a government-backed insurance scheme covering live shows.
This has happened in Germany and Austria to help lessen the risk for promoters, artists and venues.
Without some sort of intervention, big shows will be risky to put on. Glastonbury is an example.
The success of the
UK’s vaccination programme has produced cautious optimisim the sector can bounce back in the second half of the year