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[quote=”GreciaBound”]For sure the risks are there. I’m not sure there are many venues that currently exist that would be well suited for what I have in mind. One developer I spoke with was interested in the idea and discussed building a facility. The real question then becomes; If you build it, will they come?
Small amphitheatres may be a better way to approach this… Although I have very limited experience in Costa Rica concert venues, I would say the larger the facility, the larger the risk. Curious, why is the developer interested?[/quote]
I’m afraid I can’t get into the particulars but it has to do with my access to the entertainers. You are dead on correct on the concept of small amphitheatres. This has been a part of the discussions. We talked about an indoor/outdoor scenerio to eliminate weather as a factor.
[quote=”maravilla”]it was my husband who heard about it on the local spanish news, but it’s probably in print somewhere as well. i’ll see if i can find it — i think it was called an Executive Order — something the Prez can sign without having to go through channels — sort of like Clinton pardoning Mark Rich. jejeje[/quote]
Thanks for your help on this.
[quote=”GreciaBound”]I know a few places that could consider an event of 75 to 100 to be viable. This, in my opinion, may be more preferable size venue for both musicians and music lovers. American music is in demand here, from blues to oldies rock and roll, amd combined with food, drink and dancing could be wonderful.
Be careful considering 500 to 750 people event in CR, its a different animal, full of traps as you probably already know.[/quote]For sure the risks are there. I’m not sure there are many venues that currently exist that would be well suited for what I have in mind. One developer I spoke with was interested in the idea and discussed building a facility. The real question then becomes; If you build it, will they come?
[quote=”maravilla”]the bill oscar was going to sign wasn’t going through the legislature for approval, and he is supposed to sign it before he leaves office. we can only hope.[/quote]
That’s interesting. Do you have any info as to the name of the bill that would help me research this?
[quote=”clayton”]Craig Chaquico, former lead guitar for the Jefferson Starship but more recently as a great Jazz Guitar performed in Nosara twice over Valentines Day Weekend. It was a fund raiser for the monkeys but a great show and a great time had by all.[/quote]
This is a great example of what I was referring to. Would you mind describing the venue, the attendance, the ticket costs etc…?
[quote=”jdocop”][quote=”Boaterbob”][quote=”jdocop”]Bob said, in part: “With Mr. Sanchez recently signing a bill to prioritize and incentivize North American retirees I believe there is going to be a significant increase of people getting tired of the USA Politics and government intervention in their lives”.
Bob, who is this Mr. Sanchez you referred to, and what does he have to do with encouraging retirees to live in Costa Rica?
Beyond that, I am totally with Maravilla. I have no interest in being part of a large, noisy crowd, in a crowded venue, simply to hear music played too loud.[/quote]I was referring to President Oscar Arias Sanchez. There was a bill singed into law in CR about 2 weeks ago that creates incentives for promoting North American retirees to move to Costa Rica. Some actual words used in the artical was “Making it a national priority”. I don’t have the details on it but I read several articles; one pre-signing and the other was the day after he signed it. I’m sure you can find it using your browser. The initial article made reference to some incentives that would be provided to developers who would be catering to that demographic.[/quote]
Bob, if you’d check your facts, I think you would find that the current President of Costa Rica has signed no such bill. Some folks have postulated that such might be a good idea, but I do not believe that the legislature has passed any such measure. Meanwhile, if you have indeed spent all that much time here you would know that the President is not referred to as Mr. Sanchez, since Sanchez is NOT his last name, but the name of his mother. Likewise, if you had spent that much time here you would know that that ‘grand’ project over by Limon has encountered a number of obstacles, and is likely to never be carried forward, like so many other projects around the country.[/quote]
Dear Mr. Cop
I apologize that my writings and perhaps my ignorance has caused you so much anger. I claim no expertise in Costa Rica, just that I have been travelling there for many years andhave made good friends there.
With regards to “Mr. Sanchez”; I know what I read but perhaps it a lesson in not to believe everything you read.
My purpose of connecting with this social network is to engage with people who can offer constructive advise about an idea I am exploring. Fortunately I have received that from others.
[quote=”costaricafinca”][i]Oh Bob,[/i] the cruisers don’t get off the ship in Limon to listen to the music they can hear at home. Or they can just stay on board to hear [i]the oldies.[/i]
There’s no way we would head to a concert either.
There has been some outdoor concerts on the Pacific side, but I can’t say if these still happen.
I think the performers would need to be ‘pretty popular’ to get the younger or even the ex-pat audience to attend.[/quote]For sure some significant improvements to the area would need to occur should Limon be an option for an entertainment propositiion as I have outlined. One such change could be Isla Moin. I don’t know what their current development stage is but I met with the developer last year at their offices in Miami and we discussed this in detail. If/When that project is fully developed there will be about 200-300 homes, a 500 Slip Marina, a 5 star hotel and of course the Cruise ships a few miles down the coast.
Frankly, live events is how most professional musicans make their money today. It used to only be a manner of promoting record sales but that situation has completely reversed and often their new albums are a loss leader (to the artist)in order to promote the event ticket sales.
[quote=”jdocop”]Bob said, in part: “With Mr. Sanchez recently signing a bill to prioritize and incentivize North American retirees I believe there is going to be a significant increase of people getting tired of the USA Politics and government intervention in their lives”.
Bob, who is this Mr. Sanchez you referred to, and what does he have to do with encouraging retirees to live in Costa Rica?
Beyond that, I am totally with Maravilla. I have no interest in being part of a large, noisy crowd, in a crowded venue, simply to hear music played too loud.[/quote]I was referring to President Oscar Arias Sanchez. There was a bill singed into law in CR about 2 weeks ago that creates incentives for promoting North American retirees to move to Costa Rica. Some actual words used in the artical was “Making it a national priority”. I don’t have the details on it but I read several articles; one pre-signing and the other was the day after he signed it. I’m sure you can find it using your browser. The initial article made reference to some incentives that would be provided to developers who would be catering to that demographic.
I’m with you on that. The best entertainment venues are first and foremost where the musicians enjoy playing. A good sound means having the the right gear and tuning the room so the sound guys can get a good mix. The atmoshphere needs to address intimacy without the sense of overcrowding. A lot of venues that serve food think of entertainment as an after thought crowding a stage into a corner that is convenient to them. Musicians and audience are integral to each other. You first pay atttentionto the detail of what causes great entertainment then you let magic happen.
John,
Yes, I’ve been coming to Costa Rica Since 1984 when we bought land in the Southern Caribbean region. Still haven’t decided what to do with it but it has been fun mixing it up in court with the local pirates all these years. Most of my friends in CR are Tico businessmen. I really don’t know any local ex-pats which is why I joined this group. I have spent very little time researching the demographics to date but having spent 30 years in North American consumer marketing. I don’t approach anything that takes my time or investment casually. I’ll be down there soon enough but I enjoy connecting with people through social media. The advise of locals such as yourself is quite valuable.
I know there are a decent amount of North American ex-Pats in CR as well as tourists who either just visit or own second homes. On the East Coast there are cruise ships coming in to Limon at least once a week. That market would be perfect but their involvements are currently centered on River Rafting and Rain Forest activities. They tend to spend one day and then get on the boat and leave that night. Who would blame them? Limon isn’t exactly a mecca for tourism.
With Mr. Sanchez recently signing a bill to prioritize and incentivize North American retirees I believe there is going to be a significant increase of people getting tired of the USA Politics and government intervention in their lives. You add this to those who were close to retirement having seen half of their retirement portfolio wither away and I think you have a potential for a significant number of gringos to hit the trail
I’m probably not interested in running festivals. They tend to be very risky and in my limited experience the promoters who are most successful tend to operate with less ethics than I employ in business. Larger events or festivals normally draw from a pool of 25 year olds and younger. I’m focused on 250-750 person upscale club gigs.
Bob
[quote=”maravilla”]i don’t see why this isn’t viable. there are all kinds of bands, some on the has-been side, that still have a big audience in latin america. there are bluesfests in an around san jose, heavy metal is big here, although probably not so much with the expat crowd.[/quote]
Thank you for your info. I’d be interested to know the names of any of the blues festivals in CR. Blues is among my personal favorite genre’s and Blues artists are often not that costly to retain for Shows. I have personally performed with Ernie Williams on 5 occassions and all of them were benefits where he played for free. Blues also appeals to music lovers young and old.
Another benefit to solo blues artists is that you can often combine a number of them and provide a house band that backs them. This keeps costs down and provides a festival like atmosphere.
I have been looking into the idea of establishing a major USA entertainment brand at a few locations in Costa Rica. I don’t endeavor to own a club, but instead be an entertainment promoter working with a Franchise situation.
Conceptually this is about bringing B & C level North American, European, and Latin American artists to Costa Rica for perhaps a few weeks at a time. Single event situations might not be affordable but multiple shows could be. This could include known entertainers from the 60’s-90’s that would appeal to the visiting gringos, Ticos in-the-know, and of course the local ex-pats. It might also include some of the up and coming bands as often the record labels want them to go outside of prime markets to test out their materials.
I’ve already done some research and planning in terms of access to the entertainers and the powers that be feel the idea is sound. In fact they are doing something similar in Brazil.
Now the question is whether it makes sense to the guests and of course the locations. I have not yet done my demographics studies on Costa Rica. Ticket pricing is of course relative to what the market will bear as well as the cost of bringing the artists and crew down. The multi gig scenerio would help amoratize the logisitcs costs. It would be necessary to have a minimum 250 guest club and possbily go up as high as 750. Outdoor scenerios are not out of the question if permits can be obtained and it can be logistically managed. These same clubs might also be well suited to establish a high quality house band so that the location becomes a relied on source of entertainment with the occassional celebrity artists come in when and where the consumer traffic is present.
Does this make sense to anyone or am I sounding like a lunatic?
