ON TOUR
Rehearsal And Storage Facility: General Manager • Office Manager • Operations Manager
Spacious rooms in rehearsal facilities are generally rented for recording artists to use in the staging and rehearsing of live shows. Space might also be rented to audition new band members, or to stage a showcase or private performance. Most facilities also rent lockers where touring and studio musicians can store gear; provide cartage service, and rent back-line equipment.
JOB OVERVIEW
These managers oversee all aspects of the company operation including invoicing, bookkeeping, taxes, trouble-shooting, and hiring, firing, and scheduling of employees.
PREREQUISITES
To succeed, you need clerical and bookkeeping skills. You must be able to work well with a variety of people such as artist managers, road managers, musicians, technical staff, production assistants, producers and engineers, and record label and business managers. You should be able to manage a staff and negotiate pricing.
CAREER TIPS
“I've only got one year of college behind me. Now you've got to go to school—you've got to—before anybody considers you.” The music industry has become so competitive that some companies require a four-year degree to be considered for employment or acceptance into their training program.
“Listen. Don't be afraid to be quiet and learn from someone else.”
A DAY IN THE LIFE
SIR's Laura Ford Bartschi's day begins around 9 a.m. “I come in and go through the invoices for the previous day. At any given time, I could be paying bills, doing taxes, and booking rehearsals. We get a lot of large tour rentals and I help the staff with pricing and delivery fees. We travel all over the country delivering gear.”
POINTERS FOR THE JOB SEARCH
Bartschi sees working at a rehearsal facility as “a great stepping stone, if you're a musician or studying the music business, because you meet a lot of people. You can learn so much from people coming into the building. That's one great thing about Nashville: there are so many good people around that are willing to teach.”
THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT THE JOB:
“There is a lot of negotiating in prices and many times people think we make money hand over fist, but we don't. It takes a lot of money to run a company like this. There is a lot of overhead. People don't realize that. That's the part I hate.”
THE BEST THING ABOUT THIS JOB:
“I love the rehearsals more than anything else. It's fun to have people in the building enjoying the employees and everything about the facility.”
LAURA FORD BARTSCHI, GENERAL MANAGER, STUDIO INSTRUMENT RENTAL (SIR)
Bartschi's introduction to the entertainment industry was as a receptionist at a talent/modeling agency, where she later became an agent. Born and raised in Detroit, she moved to Nashville in the early 1980s. “I don't write, I don't sing, I don't play,” she says, but she did possess good organizational skills and was good at working with people—strong assets to any employer. After the agency downsized, she landed a job working for producer/label head/publisher Harold Shedd at the Music Mill. There she met the general manager of SIR and learned the company was looking for an office manager. After she interviewed with the owner in New York and completed a series of tests, she was offered the job. As office manager she learned all she could about every aspect of the company, and was rewarded with more responsibility. When her boss left the company, she was offered the position of general manager, a title she has held since 1993. www.sirtn.com
Additional topics
Job Descriptions and Careers, Career and Job Opportunities, Career Search, and Career Choices and ProfilesCareers in the Music BusinessON TOUR - Rehearsal And Storage Facility: General Manager • Office Manager • Operations Manager, Production: Production Designer And Director • Set And Lighting Designer