THE ULTIMATE LIST OF TIPS FOR TRAVELLING MUSICIANS

Snippets of the UK Music Industry

The UK Creative industry employs 8.8% of total UK jobs.

UK musicians tour 39 different countries yearly, on an average.

The value of UK music exports exceeds £17 billion every year.

In 2011, British orchestras played to over 4.18 million people in the UK.

British orchestras played in 437 concerts and generated a total income of almost £150m.

What do musicians do?

  • Rehearsing to prepare for performances
  • Travelling, near or far, to perform music for live audiences and recordings
  • Finding locations for performances or concerts, and practicing to improve their techniques
  • Auditioning for positions in orchestras, choruses, bands and other types of music groups
  • Maintaining websites or social media accounts or doing photo shoots, etc. to promote their careers

The peril of Musicians worldwide

When performing artists travel, they have to carry their instruments. More often than not, their musical instruments get damaged while on the move.

Let's look at some such incidents:

# A heavily damaged Steinway Piano

Polish pianist had the shock of his life when, in 2006, his cusom-made Steinway piano was destroyed by T.S.A. officials as a security measure.

This, along with other factors, led Zimerman to subsequently announce that he would no longer perform in the U.S.

#Threat for a 275 year-old violin

In September last year, renowned American soloist Rachel Barton Pine was informed (while travellng by air) that there was no room left for her 1742 'ex-Bazzini ex-Soldat' Guarneri del Gesu violin in the overhead lockers and that it would have to be checked into the aircraft's luggage hold.

The violinist chose to protect her instrument and wait for the next flight, she and her family slept on the airport's floor.

#Manhandling leads to Pipa damage

Last June, one of the world's foremost pipa artists – WuMan – saw the neck of her valuable instrument being snapped right off infront of her very eyes by a flight attendant. The issue? The instrument was not insured, and didn't fit in the overhead bin.

She had to play music off her fellow musicians' pipas as she waited for a replacement.

#Orchestra cancels tour due to baggage hassles

Back in 2006, the authorities on a trans-Atlantic flight banned handheld luggage (even musical instruments)  – which required valuable musical instruments being checked into baggage inspite of aboard the plane.

The Orchestra of St. Luke's cancelled its appearances at the 2006 BBC Proms and Edinburgh National Festival, due to fear of airline damages to their instruments.

#Taylor guitar suffers irreparable damages

Dave Carroll of Sons of Maxwell fame picked up his dear Taylor guitar at the O'Hare Airport, only to find it broken beyond repair.

He posted a reenactment of the incident as a music video on social media and named it “United Breaks Guitars”, which has got more than 13 million views.

To sum up, musicians and their instruments go arm in arm, and the loss of a musical instrument can be catastrophic to them.

This hampers not only their performances but also them on a psychological level.

The Flightcase Company has come up with a solution to this unrelenting problem. They make bespoke equipment cases, built just keeping your requirements in mind!

Not just for musical instruments, they have flight cases meant for carrying even mixers and microphones! Here are some quirky products:

  1. http://www.theflightcasecompany.com/pioneer-xdj-rx-flight-case/
  2. http://www.theflightcasecompany.com/roland-spd-sxd-professional-flight-case/
  3. http://www.theflightcasecompany.com/allen-heath-zed-12fx-mixer-flight-case/
  4. http://www.theflightcasecompany.com/pioneer-djm2000-nexus-dj-mixer-flight-case/
  5. http://www.theflightcasecompany.com/mixer-case-for-mackie-dl1608-digital-ipad-mixer/
  6. http://www.theflightcasecompany.com/wireless-microphone-flight-case-system/
  7. http://www.theflightcasecompany.com/flight-case-for-behringer-x32-digital-mixer/
  8. http://www.theflightcasecompany.com/multi-purpose-utility-tool-and-tech-roadie-flight-case/

Flight case company products are specially build to handle heavy wear and tear. Look for products with:

  • Scratch resistant outer material
  • Heavy duty latches
  • Heavy duty carry handles
  • Shock resistant inside padding

So be it your drumset or guitar, feel free to tag your musical better half along with you when on a flight with FlightCase.

Travel safe!

Source

http://www.classicfm.com/artists/rachel-barton-pine/violin-airline/#gRhAcOYKRPyOOKkj.97

http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes272042.htm

http://www.wqxr.org/#!/story/top-five-flying-disasters-musicians/

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/entertainment-and-sports/musicians-and-singers.htm#tab-2

http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes272042.htm

http://www.musiciansunion.org.uk/Files/Reports/Industry/The-Working-Musician-report

http://www.thecreativeindustries.co.uk/resources/create-uk-strategy