Musical Mystery Tour

Your thoughts on what's to see and do
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Steve
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Musical Mystery Tour

Post by Steve » Fri 07 Aug, 2015 9:01 pm

This year's Musical Mystery Tour takes place on Sunday 30th August with over 30 venues taking part.

http://www.hertfordmusicfestival.co.uk/ ... y-tour.php

The exact schedules for each venue tend to trickle in over the days and weeks so keep an eye on the website.

SloopJohnB
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Joined:Mon 02 Feb, 2015 12:46 pm

Re: Musical Mystery Tour

Post by SloopJohnB » Mon 31 Aug, 2015 12:22 pm

Unless I fell asleep and missed something I thought yesterday was a huge success. Mrs B and myself wandered through town, met a few old friends, chatted to a few people who had come to Hertford just for the event and met up with other residents. And a few drinks along the way.

Well done Kev. Pleased for you. It just goes to show that the sun does shine on the righteous.

Kev, you proved something that I never could - that organised events in the town centre bring in people. East Herts wanted the Town Centre Management Boards in Hertford and Ware to to utilise the grant to concentrate on providing economic information rather than staging events. I could provide as much economic intelligence as they liked but it wouldn't bring in thousands of visitors. I know some retailers were not keen on such events (with good reasons in some cases) but events such as the MMT are a shop window for the town.

Golden
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Joined:Sun 01 Dec, 2013 10:36 am

Re: Musical Mystery Tour

Post by Golden » Mon 31 Aug, 2015 12:52 pm

Agreed John - it was an excellent event again and lots of fun for all concerned. As well as Kev's contributions there are many others who put in many hours to make this happen; and let's not forget sponsors who put hands in pockets.

Smudger
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Joined:Thu 05 Dec, 2013 9:50 pm

Re: Musical Mystery Tour

Post by Smudger » Mon 31 Aug, 2015 5:25 pm

I went to a few venues with some friends last, and was amazed by the size of the event, and the quality of the bands involved.
Brilliant ska/reggae band in the white Hart garden in particular.
Will definately be inviting friends over to stay next year.

A great event - one question to Kev - how is it funded ? or do the bands play for free ?

Golden
Posts:237
Joined:Sun 01 Dec, 2013 10:36 am

Re: Musical Mystery Tour

Post by Golden » Mon 31 Aug, 2015 5:59 pm

Hi Smudger, as far as I know all of the bands play for free so they should be applauded too for their contribution to the event as it wouldn't be half as enjoyable without their efforts. All of the rest is mainly volunteers from the organisers and the sound engineers, stewards, Street Pastors, runners, etc. plus some of the organisational aspect before the event. I believe Kev gets some salary and expenses but if you worked out the hourly rate it would probably be well below the minimum wage and considering how much revenue is raised for the town then its peanuts TBH. Sponsorship money is vital as equipment and advertising has to be supplied - I brought one of the packages through my company a few years ago as I'd previously enjoyed the event so much I wanted to lend it my support and I hope this year's sponsors Sloppy's enjoyed it as much as I have. My only regret is that its only 12 hours long and I love ska/reggae (The SGs?) but missed them as went around to the Templars to watch one of my favourite local bands Unit 22 and it was rocking in there - you can't watch it all!! One of my favourite moments in there was to see the kids dancing (and providing backing vocals to the encore) then looking to my right to see a lady of at least 75 years dancing on the stairs.

What really impresses me is the variety of the music and the choice available in both the venues and the musicians on offer. Lets hope MMT 2016 is as good.

SloopJohnB
Posts:115
Joined:Mon 02 Feb, 2015 12:46 pm

Re: Musical Mystery Tour

Post by SloopJohnB » Mon 31 Aug, 2015 8:26 pm

Let me underline all that Golden has said. I doubt if anyone has an idea of the many people who contribute to this event and do it for free, or love of the town or just love of music.

I ran the old style Hertford Music Festival in 2005 because there was no on else and I was organising Fun Day at the same time. I got paid an agreed amount and In January got paid one fifth. I told the Treasurer this was very nice of them but I hadn't done anything yet. You will, came the reply. And boy were they right. Kev took it over the following year and had the genesis of how the festival and the MMT should evolve. I reckon most people at the time thought he was mad. Maybe he was, but we should all be pleased he was.

Kev does get some remuneration - I hope more than I got, but anyone who takes this on deserves each and every pound. And to agree with Golden again there is an army of people behind this who get nothing. But do applaud the sponsors and the musicians and friends of same and the publicans and their bar staff.

Kev slotted a friend of mine into a gig at the last moment last year. He was spotted and has released a single. Things happen the right way sometimes.

@HertfordSoul
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Joined:Wed 24 Jun, 2015 9:17 pm

Re: Musical Mystery Tour

Post by @HertfordSoul » Mon 31 Aug, 2015 10:30 pm

It was an absolutely brilliant day, well done to Kev and the team.

Highlights for me were Colin Swift (White Horse), Don Letts (Elbert Square), Ethan Barnett (Old Barge) and The McTells (Hertford Museum). Had a conversation from a guy in America on twitter, who loves The McTells, after seeing them. He didn't realise they were still playing together (even if it was just a one-off). As for Elbert Square - it would be great if they could organise something there on a regular basis, it was a brilliant atmosphere.

Here's to next year!

HertfordMF
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Joined:Thu 17 Sep, 2015 7:52 am

Re: Musical Mystery Tour

Post by HertfordMF » Thu 17 Sep, 2015 8:23 am

To everyone that attended the Musical Mystery Tour this year.
THANK YOU
Your support is very much appreciated.
Obviously we work very hard all year to ensure that the day runs well and provides a platform for the musicians that give their experience and immense talent for free.
As pointed out the event runs on a shoestring and we always struggle to find the finance we need to support it. As the event grows the costs increase.
We are looking for sponsors for MMT 2016. If you are interested or you know a business that may be interested, please let us know. Details can be found on our website: http://www.hertfordmusicfestival.co.uk/sponsorship.php
or email us at guinnrobert@me.com
Once more thank you for your support and appreciation.

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