Aimi Mukohara ＆ Narita no Okage presents Good To Be Home, vol.3

On September 29, 2019, the outdoor festival "Aimi Mukohara & Narita no Okage presents Good To Be Home, vol.3" was held at Naritasan Omotesando Street. We provided equipment for this event where we can enjoy music, food, and art culture of Narita.

We provided all of this equipment!!

I loaded all of them so neatly. Somebody, give me some compliments. Lol.

We met at 9 am and started preparing immediately!!
We determined the position of the main speakers, and set up the speaker stands (of course, CLASSIC PRO SPS) to the height of the audience's ears. The subwoofer was placed near the speaker stands on the PA side in consideration of the routing of the main cables. Then, after placing the floor monitors in the appropriate place, we routed the power cables. We had two generators provided, and assigned one for the main speakers and the other one for the monitor speakers considering the power consumption, but we were careful about how to route the power cables.

It was quite difficult to route the cables around the stage so that they didn't interfere with the performers and at the same time look like an eye sore. We wrote the numbers on the narrow curing tapes and put them on the microphone and equipment cables so that we don't get the wrong connection. I tried to route these cables around the stage as well, but then, the cables were just strewn about out there… Let's keep it a secret. Lol.

Five bands performed that day. One group used a drum set and another didn't, the position of the bass amp was right or left depending on the band, the equipment the bands brought in, the position and the number of microphones, the standing position, the number of direct boxes, the position/angle/height of the floor monitors… everything varied. Every time the band changed, we had to remove the equipment from the stage and rebuild it for the next band, and it was just the two of us doing most of it. It was so crazy!

What I learned this time is;

• Marking is important in setting up the equipment. We also have to write down the equipment name on it.
• Direct box controls are designed to be easily switched. I panicked when there was no sound because I didn't notice the INST was switched to the SPKR on the direct box.
• An extension cable is an absolute must for the power cable. A power strip is also required. It is better to have more than one of these.

The festival was opened by a local jazz band called IShiMatsu Jazz Trio with Friends.
Listening to jazz music in the open-air felt so luxurious. Their performance was awesome, and all the solos were really cool. Personally, I love that the audience applauds after every solo in jazz performances. They did a great job like the first band with various types of jazz numbers such as vocal and standard.

Continuing the next set was Tokyo Romany. I had never heard of this band, so when they played I was hooked in an instant, and I was fascinated by the free-spirited performance with a wireless microphone. Time passed in no time. I was surprised that not only Ray, a violinist, but also Otoji, a double bass player, was walking around while playing instruments. It is impossible for me to carry such a big instrument while keeping the rhythm. Lol. The performance involved Narita's local mascot Unari-kun in the middle and it made everybody smile.

I think Pablo is now a band based in Narita? This band feels so familiar to me. I can't be the only one who feels at ease listening to their sounds and songs. I was finally able to hear "SING BABY" live. This song was released shortly before my lovely daughter was born♪ Applause to Furuya's steady drumming and Nasuken's dynamic bass drove the catchy melody and the cool voice of Mokutaro brought the audience to life. I love this band more and more every time I see them. They are the best.

One thing I realize every time I help the event is;
"make the sound that the musician wants to convey loud and deliver the musician's feelings to the audience out there."
I'm so proud and happy that I have a job that directly helps musicians.
There is still a lot of room for improvement, but I hope we can help them create a better stage next time. The vol.4 of Good To Be Home will be held on December 22, at the Narita Cultural Arts Center Sky Town Hall. It's going to be my first time working as a PA in a hall, so I'm really looking forward to it!