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Guy Salamon Group - Green Pilot Tour
"Making a green - environmentally aware tour is both a very important mission and a very challenging one. In Catalunya, where the tour took place, it was apparent that some of the infrastructure necessary to support a green tour just wasn’t fully there yet. That created great difficulties for us at times and forced us to find new solutions on the go. On the other hand, the entire notion of the green pilot tour often raised important and healthy discussions and awareness, whether among the band members themselves, with the venues and staff or with the public audience."
Guy Salamon Group toured Catalonia in March 2023. Five regular concerts, one showcase concert at Jazz I Am, two quintet gigs and two workshops with students, all in nine days.
The musicians flew to Barcelona. Young trees (Reforesta.org) were planted to compensate CO2 emission. Local transport was done by train and electric cars. Housing was central; one apartment for the band in Barcelona, from where trips to the gigs were made. Only small instruments were transported. No merchandise but a handful of cd's. All concerts were well-attended or sold out. No plastic bottles or straws were used on stage and the venues all provided glass for drinks.
HOWEVER: what happens when one of two cars does not charge well and the band has to stop three times on a 150km trip back to Barcelona? They miss one whole night of sleep. The rental company offers no knowledgeable assistance and no solution but change the car to a regular one. Doing so takes more than one afternoon in a tightly scheduled week, plus more than 100 euros in extra expenses, plus stress and mounting distrust in the choices made beforehand. AND: the band arrives at the venue and wants to fill their personal water bottles to bring on stage. Water from the tap turns out to be not drinkable. The band are given thirty small plastic water bottles to fill their personal bottles. OR: after-concert dinner option on the road is regular hamburger, only choice. This just to say that you can plan as much sustainability as you want, but then life happens...
The musicians flew to Barcelona. Young trees (Reforesta.org) were planted to compensate CO2 emission. Local transport was done by train and electric cars. Housing was central; one apartment for the band in Barcelona, from where trips to the gigs were made. Only small instruments were transported. No merchandise but a handful of cd's. All concerts were well-attended or sold out. No plastic bottles or straws were used on stage and the venues all provided glass for drinks.
HOWEVER: what happens when one of two cars does not charge well and the band has to stop three times on a 150km trip back to Barcelona? They miss one whole night of sleep. The rental company offers no knowledgeable assistance and no solution but change the car to a regular one. Doing so takes more than one afternoon in a tightly scheduled week, plus more than 100 euros in extra expenses, plus stress and mounting distrust in the choices made beforehand. AND: the band arrives at the venue and wants to fill their personal water bottles to bring on stage. Water from the tap turns out to be not drinkable. The band are given thirty small plastic water bottles to fill their personal bottles. OR: after-concert dinner option on the road is regular hamburger, only choice. This just to say that you can plan as much sustainability as you want, but then life happens...
Guy says: "In my personal experience, making a green - environmentally aware tour is both a very important mission and a very challenging one. It was meaningful for me and yet at some points confronting to see what obstacles come up on the way. In Catalunya, where the tour took place, it was apparent that some of the infrastructure necessary to support a green pilot tour just wasn’t fully there yet. That created great difficulties for us at times and forced us to find new solutions on the go. On the other hand, the entire notion of the green pilot tour often raised important and healthy discussions and awareness, whether among the band members themselves, with the venues and staff or with the public audience."
LINKS:
https://www.injazz.nl/green-pilot-tour/
https://www.injazz.nl/news/green-pilot-tour-guy-salamon-group-in-catalonia/
https://www.jazzcava.com/concert/guy-salamon-quintet?bg=bg-orange
https://jazziam.barcelona/en/2023-edition/showcases-2023/guy-salamon-group/
https://www.orfeolleidata.cat/espectacle/jazz-i-am/
https://jazzcambrils.wordpress.com/
https://www.jazzwise.com/review/article/jazz-i-am-brings-a-bounty-of-new-talent-to-barcelona-spain
LINKS:
https://www.injazz.nl/green-pilot-tour/
https://www.injazz.nl/news/green-pilot-tour-guy-salamon-group-in-catalonia/
https://www.jazzcava.com/concert/guy-salamon-quintet?bg=bg-orange
https://jazziam.barcelona/en/2023-edition/showcases-2023/guy-salamon-group/
https://www.orfeolleidata.cat/espectacle/jazz-i-am/
https://jazzcambrils.wordpress.com/
https://www.jazzwise.com/review/article/jazz-i-am-brings-a-bounty-of-new-talent-to-barcelona-spain