- Alma
Yes, yes, go ahead, please, after you. Okay, so we have a name, we have a program, we have photos and a social media strategy. So why aren't the promoters getting back to us? With credit card, please. What are we missing to finally get up on stage? Have a nice day
- Speaker
hEEElp We're starting an ensemble! An audio guide for emerging early music artists.
- Alma
My name is Alma. I'm 25 years old. I play violin in an early music ensemble. And we're ready. We're ready for a real date, a proper concert. But nothing's happening. We're genuinely wondering how you build connections in this world. Come on now, think Alma. You talked about this with Pablo Traine, the horn player from Coloquio 6, after his concert a few weeks ago. He said... What did he say again?
- Speaker
Episode 4. Getting on stage.
- Pablo Traine
So as a group we were in direct contact with our teachers who are our role models in this kind of music and gave us repertoire and gave us very interesting thoughts about what can we do musically. Then some members after living a couple of years in the Netherlands had already gotten some contacts from other performances previous with other groups. And starting from there, we could get in contact with other, with promoters, with some festivals to play in. But then everyone was living in a country that is not ours. So for us, we had to build ourselves a network.
- Alma
Oh, that's it. And when I mentioned competition between ensembles, he laughed. I'm ready to fight to make sure we stand out from the rest, but... Maybe that's not the best idea.
- Pablo Traine
I don't know if it's just because we are friendly people and our group friends are also friendly people. Or maybe it's because we are not direct competition. But we have shared thoughts about different festivals, different groups. I'm happy sharing information about schemes, competitions and stuff that we have done to other friends. I think generosity plays a big role in our scene. We are not that many people, we know each other, and I think it's very nice to be connected.
- Alma
And at the end, he added this. And I definitely haven't forgotten it.
- Pablo Traine
If there's anything you need... Pierre knows who you need to talk to, so he will show you around.
- Alma
That's why I'm here. Pierre is Pierre Bornachot. He is the Deputy Director of the Cultural Encounter Centre in Ambronay in France. He was in charge of programming the Ambronay Festival for many years and has been involved in the Emerging Project since its very beginning as a founding member. Which means he has met many emerging ensembles just like us. So I'm going to meet him in Embrunet. Well, yes, if you want to know how to get booked, you might as well go and talk to a programmer. So, Pierre, what do you expect from young ensembles who contact you for the first time?
- Pierre Bornachot
I think that I want to know... Which story they are telling. I want to see what is special in them, but I want also to be reassured about how they will touch the audience and everything. So I want to have a clear concept. And I want them to introduce themselves, to show me why I should hire them, why they are unique in a way. But both I want to be... I'm reassured also on the fact that I will have an audience if they come. So I need to have both sides. I need them to explain to me that people will be surprised, but also that they will be reassured with some maybe known composers or a clear program, a clear storytelling. For example, if we take a trio sonata in the early music scene and network, it's maybe the most common thing. so there are Not a hundred, but dozens of young ensembles of this kind. So if you come to me as a programmer with just saying we are a trio sonata ensemble, okay, so it needs to be much more than just introducing yourself as a trio sonata ensemble.
- Alma
And how do you know if it's too early for us?
- Pierre Bornachot
You know as an ensemble when you are ready to produce yourself in front of an audience and in front of a programmer, but... You need to be ready in all the aspects. I mean, you need to be ready in the production aspect, in the administrative aspect, on the communication aspect. You need to be fully prepared. If you come to see me, but you don't have already some communication material or you don't have any feedbacks of an audience in a concert, yes, I would say that it's too early. The musical aspect is not enough to come to see a programmer. You need to have everything around it.
- Alma
Thank you, Pierre. I have to catch my train, but this was brilliant. It's a huge help.
- Pierre Bornachot
And don't hesitate to come back in Ambronay. You know that we've been supporting ensembles for a long time. It's the place to be for young ensembles. Don't hesitate to come.
- Alma
Really great contact with Ambronay. Maybe a first lead. Shall we meet up tonight?
- Speaker
hEEElp We're starting an ensemble! An audio guide for emerging early music artists.
- Alma
A podcast produced by the Collective Reset, as part of the European project Sustainable Emerging, co-founded by the European Union and coordinated by the Cultural Encounter Centre of Ambronay.
