The New Routine and a Trek North

After about seven weeks, I can safely report back to all of you who follow the ravings and rantings that appear here that my decision which was chronicled in the last and possibly most lengthy entry here has been a rousing success so far. The day after my last day at the Alley (which didn't end until about 11:00 in the evening following the second preview of The Scene) I was called to work a Load In at Jones Hall, and work has continued to come my way pretty steadily since then.

As I have had a chance to place my skills on display at various jobs (ExxonMobil Energy Tech conference in the Woodlands, several meetings and events for El Paso energy and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (a certified sleeper) at the Hilton adjoining the George R Brown Convention Center and a few gigs at the union theaters in the downtown theater district my suspicions about the lack of knowledgeable and competent Sound Engineers freelancing here in town are being confirmed.

The latest gig I had at Jones Hall earlier this week was no more stressful or a hassle than a lot of the rentals that came into the Alley, and I treated it as such. It was for the Bayou City Chorale's performance of their holiday concert. The Chorale consist of a Gay men's chorus of about 80 and a Women's Chorus of 30 or so. As is the case with groups like this, it was not very well organized in terms of the scheduled structure of the rehearsal on Monday evening, but I rolled with what they did and as much as they got done I was able to tech and get a good feel for. What made the day interesting was that although I had worked in the building once before on the Load In and Out the weekend following my last day at the Alley, it had been in the capacity of a Stagehand, so I learned nothing about how the house sound system worked, where equipment was stored, and what the room sounded like. The Houston Symphony was loading out that morning, and when I got there around Noon the Symphony sound guy was still there and he was gracious enough to stick around for a little while and show me the three areas where stuff I might need was kept, how the console at the Mezzanine position patched into the house sound system, and he also helped me set up the console at that position. I'm not sure what would have happened if he hadn't have decided to take pity on me and lend a hand. Once things were pretty much in place and working (that's another thing, pretty much everything I plugged in worked the first time, which was kind of amazing, considering that it was a minor accomplishment when I was at the Alley, and I know that space and the system inside out by heart...) I was able to settle down up at the board, eat some sandwiched I brought (another thing I learned pretty quick--always take food to almost every call unless it's a strike, since you never know what's gonna happen in terms of the feces hitting the air handler as far as the schedule or client's wants/needs/demands go) and get a handle on how the choirs sounded in the room with the system I was working with.

After the show, the director and the guy who was acting as the SM were both happy and vocal in letting me know that, which is the bottom line on a gig like that. The facilities guy who hired me (based on a reference from a designer I worked with at the Alley last season who is based here in Houston--thanks, Garth!) was also happy that the Chorale folks were happy as well as being impressed that I was able to accomplish as much as I did on Monday without having to call him or Garth or either of the other sound people who have worked in that building in the past and essentially told me that he had as much work ing the building for me as I wanted to take, which seems to be the case (the building is owned by the city and is booked as much as possible to maximize revenue) between the Symphony and its many different performance series (Broadway, Pops, and regular season), The Society for the Performing Arts, and the various other organizations like the Chorale who are in there on a semi frequent basis.

This is above and beyond the work I've done for AVW, the Production Services company that provides all the A/V/Lighting services for corporate events at a lot of the hotels and the GRB Convention Center here in town. It's even more simple and much more mind numbing than the events at Jones Hall or the Wortham Center, but the constant state of flux is ever present, usually in a much more intense manner. What's great about working with AVW on the corporate side of things is the fact that I'm there to work in the room either setting up or taking down an event or operating it. If I need anything that wasn't on the original list of gear, if something is busted or if the client suddenly changes their mind about what they want or when they want it I can turn to one of the AVW staff guys and presto! it happens fairly quickly. This aspect of working through the local has been one of the most refreshing ones, the aspect of not being in charge, and being able to simply show up, be told what the project or goal is, accomplishing it, and then going away, never to concern myself with it again. One of the most grueling things about my work at the Alley was that I had gotten to a place where I thought about the job ALL THE TIME. When I was at work, I thought about everything that needed to be done (of course). But then I'd go home, and think about work. I'd go down to Galveston, I'd think about work. I'd go up to Annalee's or Amy's or out to Mike and Julie's and think about the job. I'd get on a plane and fly up to Philly (which is where I am right now--actually coming down into the lovely Tri State Area) and I'd think about the job. I wouldn't give up any of the years I spent at the Alley or any of the things that I learned there, but the last seven weeks have showed me how crazy things had gotten. My body has also been telling me how it feels about not being in a constant state of semi emergency mode--there are spates when I am really tired and it's not following any crazy period of work or anything--it's just my body saying "OK, we're going to rest now". It was especially surreal when mid November came around and I wasn't loading in and then teching Christmas Carol for the first time in twelve years. Refreshing, but surreal.

So, a success so far. Also, a chance to spend more than the requisite three or four days up in Philly for Christmas allowing for a few days to spend with my brother Brian above and beyond the Christmas day spent up at his house with our Mom.