Putting SL Music in its Place

The Club Red Door opened up this past Friday.  With a special mandate: 
 “Where the blues never end.”  
 

Run by Madmax Huet, the place is open 24/7.   Sometimes with live performers (including Madmax) singing the blues.  Maybe sometimes with a DJ riding the blues.    Sometimes with web radio streaming the blues. 

The Red Door offers Subscribe-O-Matic.   Subscribe-O-Matic is getting increasingly popular with performers and venues as a substitute for SL groups when the primary function is to send out notices about events.  Subscribe-O-Matic lets the owner send out notices in SL, but people can subscribe without spending a group slot.  (Most people who are active in SL, need all their group slots and cannot afford to spend them on notice groups.)    Subscribe-O-Matic is free (at this writing) if the number of subscribers is small.

The Red Door has shops near the entrance. That’s one way venue owners may be able to monetize traffic.  The music is streamed over a lot of the island, so people who come to the club can wander off, look around, shop or whatever, without missing the music.

Performers you might hear behind the Red Door:

Benisimo Luik, Mar Biddle, Miky Andretti, Madmax Huet, Veronica Weksler, Nonge Shipman

Guthrie’s American and traditional folk music.

“At Guthrie's you will hear the many sounds of American and Traditional Folk Music.  Our name comes from the American Folk Hero Woody Guthrie”  You will also see a schedule on the wall. 

The owner and operator, Dottie Iceberg, invites performers:  “Singers/Songwriters, Originals, Folk, Country, Bluegrass, Blues, Celtic and Irish, Ballads are all most welcomed here at Guthrie’s. Occasionally, there may be some pop tunes or classic rock mixed in, but generally I feel it is good to stay as close to the theme of the Club as possible. “

I was there Saturday to hear Peet Peterman.  Apparently he will be a regular there.   I also  went there Sunday Morning (SLT) and heard a little of Quinton Whitman.  Reminded me of Leadbelly.  (I put the link in for the youngsters.) 

When there is no live performer, the music is streamed from Folk Ally Dot Com

Performers you might hear at Guthrie's

Zorch Boomhauer, DanLange Diavolo,  Kiaranne Flanagan,  Peet Peterman,  Russell Eponym,  Lexie Luan,  Cindy Ecksol,  Quinton Whitman, Robbie Tunwarm and many others, some who have not been in SL music very long,  but always will have an opportunity to perform here at Guthries.  It is the spirit of the music that makes Guthries feel alive and all those who give of their talents and time just  to make us feel good.

Dottie Iceberg says 

" I would love to make more people aware of the charitiable work that has been going on in the Guthrie Center located in the Berkshires of Massachusetts.  Arlo Guthrie purchased the Trinity Church back in 1991 in the hope of being able to serve the Community holding Concert events,  Community luncheons, Charity drives for Hunington's Disease, which his Father, Woodrow Wilson Guthrie suffered from and succumed to it.  I have all the information contained in a picture board inside the Venue for all to read.  My dream is to somehow be an extension for the Guthrie Center in spreading the word of all the good they do for the Communities. To me this is more than just a Venue of pixels.  This represents the caring and kindhearted people for whom it is named and how they are reaching out to those who need help."

Possible Benefits of Genre Branding Venues

• Newcomer info
• Cross promotion with other things related to genre
• Hangout for interest in the genre, building genre-related community

Newcomer info

Genre branding of a venue allows those of us working on content for newcomers to give more useful information about entertainment available in SL.  I have gathered a large number of landmarks to give to newcomers.  I don’t include musical venues because I don’t have anything useful to tell people about the venues. 

I would not give people a landmark to the Red Door, for example, because the name tells them nothing.  (Ok, maybe they can guess it is more welcoming than the Green Door, but as to what is behind the Red Door, it might as well be the Green Door.) 

If I can add “Blues – 24/7,” I give people info they can use to choose.   Two items of info: genre and time.  I feel comfortable recommending “Red Door -- Blues – 24/7” for newcomers because they know what they will find at any time they go.  Same for Guthrie’s --  Guthrie’s American and traditional folk music.    So I can give newcomers links to these places. Good info for newcomers. And for musicians. 

Cross promotion with other things related to genre

Selling things related to the genre would be a natural.  You are bringing in traffic with interests in things about the genre.   Amazon probably has lots of books and music tracks of interest to those people.  Musical instruments and audio equipment may also be of interest to them.  A few may want some form of musical instruction.  Cosmic Haystack teaches banjo via the internet.  His group may go on to teach guitar and other things.   A venue related to bluegrass, folk, and C&W might be the right place for him and his group to find students.

Hangout for interest in the genre, building genre-related community

Community would be the game-winning scenario.  Building a community requires a place to gather.  That does not guarantee that a community will develop.  But it is a start.  Creates an opportunity.  A few venues may succeed in building a genre-based community.  Makes me think of the old days of the Grand Old Opry.