Any musicians?

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Wonderdog

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Apr 25, 2005
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Hola!

Are there any experienced musicians out there who could give me their take on what the live music scene might be like down there? I'm wondering if a good American style classic rock band might be able to work the north shore resorts or the Cabarete-type bar scenes and make any appreciable income. I'm not thinking living wage, but maybe some good steady "helper" income. I've been in working bands here in the states, and I own a PA system which is portable, yet very high quality - and I'm thinking about whether to haul it down. I was just considering if it might be worhtwhile to try to round up some expat musicians and put something together. If nothing else, we could get lined up with a bunch of expat bar/nightclubs.

Any thoughts?
 
Hillbilly

Hillbilly

Moderator
Jan 1, 2002
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Hey Dog!

Try and contact MrMike. He is a guitar player of some note and can at least point you in a good direction. You can do a "search" for his addies.

I, too, wish you the best of luck. I do think that to pull this off you need to be here, not there. You will have to press the flesh, meet the people and then get the gigs.

Really hoping you can do this thing.

HB :D:D:D
 
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Wonderdog

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Apr 25, 2005
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Hillbilly said:
Try and contact MrMike. He is a guitar player of some note and can at least point you in a good direction. You can do a "search" for his addies.

I, too, wish you the best of luck. I do think that to pull this off you need to be here, not there. You will have to press the flesh, meet the people and then get the gigs.

Really hoping you can do this thing.

HB :D:D:D
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Thanks for the response. I guess I could have clarified a little better. I am planning on being there full time within the next 2 years - I spend about 4-6 weeks in DR per year right now. I'm just playing around with different ideas right now about how to pass time and generate some extra scratch. I would love to find 3 or 4 people who would like to put some time into forming a quality act which we could even sell to the resorts. I've even thought of purchasing a small beach bar (missed a great opportunity in Juan Dolio) and being the house band. I saw a great little blues act at a bar in Cabarete a year or so back that got me to thinking about it.
 
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Wonderdog

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Apr 25, 2005
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windeguy said:
I too wish you a lot of luck at this. I am a keyboard player/vocalist that moved to Cabarete from California. My real jobs were in engineering and then sales, but my first love is music. I have not seen a great deal of opportunity to play live Rock music here. There is one band, called Crash, that is a 3 piece group that plays occasionally, plays well and gets some gigs in Cabarete/Sosua. I spoke to the drummer and he said it is quite difficult to get gigs. Maybe if there were more bands, then there could be more opportunities as time progresses.

One thing I have noticed that is different about here versus the US is that the top local bands, the same ones that you hear on the radio, are touring constantly, which keeps the market pretty sataurated for that type of music. Would there be room for a Rock and Roll band at Sosua Car Wash? Perhaps, but it would take some marketing, a lot of "pressing the flesh", and the band would have to be very good. I would say go for it, and let us know when you are getting started.
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Thanks for the reply, windeguy. I'll be looking for keys/vocs when I start things up - stay in practice! I'm a bassist myself, and do vocals. I've got a cousin that lives there who plays drums, but I'm not certain of his level of commitment yet.

I plan on putting quite a bit of effort into the music/bookings - as I think I'm going to make playing live a quasi-job in order to not get bored with "retirement". Plus, I have NO PROBLEM spending time in bars, so the pressing of the flesh will come naturally. Even if it were only one or two nights a week rolling over the same venues each month, I want to make it a professional effort and create a following. As far as the music itself, I plan on a majority of classic type rock (Stones, Aerosmith, Beatles, etc.) plus a good mix of blues, some newer stuff, and some local favorites played with an edge. I plan on putting serious effort and time into this if I decide to do it. I'll be there for 2 weeks in August, and I'm going to do some traveling and scoping out of cities and venues.
 
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juanita

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Apr 22, 2004
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Some years back I meet some good old Canadian Blues/Rockers/Bikers who used to come down to the DR and would tour all over the country. They had a very busy schedule and were playing almost every night! The band was called something like the Jack of Diamonds and their ?manager? was Bolivar here in Santo Domingo. I could find his number if you need it! I would never miss one of their concerts and places like the Beer House would get packed when they would play. Anyway, good luck! ;)
 
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Wonderdog

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Apr 25, 2005
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Casting call

If anyone knows a guitarist, singer, drummer, or keyboard player who might be interested in a venture into the live music business, or if you are interested yourself, feel free to PM or email me. I've got a few interested individuals here in the states, but talk is cheap. I will be in country later this summer and would like to start meeting people and forming the infrastucture of this project without delay. I will be looking for solid, experienced players first - those who have played in a working band previously. I will be travelling around quite a bit while there, so location shouldn't be too much of an issue right now. The actual rehearsals could start as early as this fall depending on how quickly I find the right people and how smoothly the importing of the equipment goes. I will distribute the practice material to the band members as soon as they are commited to the project - so when reheasals start in earnest they will go very quickly. Thanks for the read.
 
Tamborista

Tamborista

hasta la tambora
Apr 4, 2005
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Where are you based in the US?
Are you planning on living permantly in DR?


I am a drummer and currently learning to play tipico!
Although professional, it is a only a serious hobby for me now.
 
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Wonderdog

New member
Apr 25, 2005
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Tamborista said:
Where are you based in the US?
Are you planning on living permantly in DR?


I am a drummer and currently learning to play tipico!
Although professional, it is a only a serious hobby for me now.
Click to expand...

Hey T,

I'm in the midwest US right now. I am going to be living in the DR permanently within 2 years - depending on a few unresolved factors. Do you have a kit in the DR? I own a complete Pearl Exp. kit ( I like to dabble in all the instruments ) which I'm bringing down along w/ all the other equipment.
 
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