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Daniel Erdmann’s Therapie de Couple - Green Pilot Tour
Daniel Erdmann’s German-French sextet, Therapie de Couple, embarked on a Green Pilot Tour in May 2024. This ambitious and international journey showcased the dedication of artists committed to sustainable practices, even when faced with logistical and financial challenges.
Tour Schedule
- 19/05/2024: Bimhuis, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- 20/05/2024: Music Meeting Festival, Nijmegen, Netherlands (concert and panel discussion)
- 21/05/2024: Manchester Jazz Festival, Manchester, United Kingdom
- 22/05/2024: The Glasshouse, London, United Kingdom
Sustainability in Practice
One of the tour's most significant achievements was its reliance on train travel, including an all-day journey from Nijmegen, Netherlands, to Manchester, United Kingdom, with multiple stopovers. This decision reduced the environmental impact of the tour but required meticulous planning and financial preparation.
- Funding: While the EJN Green Pilot Tour grant covered 50% of travel costs, additional funding was secured through Spedidam to offset the high cost of international train tickets during a busy holiday weekend.
- Challenges: Train travel posed challenges, including delays, cancellations, and extreme weather conditions. Severe thunderstorms in the Netherlands caused temporary evacuation of the Music Meeting Festival site, although Daniel Erdmann’s indoor concert the following day proceeded without issue.
- Collaboration: Transparent communication among all parties—venues, festivals, management, and artists—was essential to managing logistics and maintaining clarity on financial arrangements.
Artistic and Audience Engagement
Despite the challenges, the tour delivered artistically and attracted enthusiastic audiences. Highlights included:
- Music Meeting Festival: A sold-out event day with an audience of 300.
- Public Debate: Daniel Erdmann participated in a panel discussion on green touring at Music Meeting Festival, alongside Maria Clara Espinel (Centro Nacional de las Artes, Colombia) and moderated by Gwendolenn Sharp (The Green Room).
Audience turnout for the concerts was strong, with most tickets sold in the week leading up to the events, demonstrating growing interest in new European projects.
Feedback and Reflections
The Therapie de Couple Green Pilot Tour highlighted both the rewards and complexities of sustainable touring.
Successes:
- The tour served as a powerful example of how collaboration across borders can promote sustainability and awareness within the music industry.
- It demonstrated that, with proper planning, even international projects can significantly reduce their environmental impact.
Challenges:
- High travel costs required additional funding and careful budget management.
- Long train journeys, while eco-friendly, were tiring for the musicians, particularly when carrying instruments.
- Extreme weather caused disruptions, highlighting the increasing impact of climate change on event planning.
- Organising the tour required substantial effort, with nearly 200 emails exchanged, underscoring the workload and digital carbon footprint involved.
Open communication and transparency in all aspects of planning, especially financial allocation, were critical to the tour’s success. The experience reinforced the importance of clear coordination among all stakeholders to minimise misunderstandings and optimise outcomes.
The Therapie de Couple Green Pilot Tour was a valuable initiative, made possible by the EJN Green Pilot Tour grant. While it highlighted the effort and commitment required to make sustainable touring viable, it also showcased how such practices can inspire audiences, engage artists, and pave the way for more environmentally conscious approaches in the music industry.
Links:
https://musicmeeting.nl/en/artist/all-ears-panel
https://musicmeeting.nl/en/artist/daniel-erdmanns-therapie-de-couple
https://theglasshouseicm.org/read-watch-listen/going-green-daniel-erdmanns-eco-jazz-adventure/
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BahvEa62G6gyMKG/
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/6hHYp7HtXArv1iHc/
Tour Schedule
- 19/05/2024: Bimhuis, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- 20/05/2024: Music Meeting Festival, Nijmegen, Netherlands (concert and panel discussion)
- 21/05/2024: Manchester Jazz Festival, Manchester, United Kingdom
- 22/05/2024: The Glasshouse, London, United Kingdom
Sustainability in Practice
One of the tour's most significant achievements was its reliance on train travel, including an all-day journey from Nijmegen, Netherlands, to Manchester, United Kingdom, with multiple stopovers. This decision reduced the environmental impact of the tour but required meticulous planning and financial preparation.
- Funding: While the EJN Green Pilot Tour grant covered 50% of travel costs, additional funding was secured through Spedidam to offset the high cost of international train tickets during a busy holiday weekend.
- Challenges: Train travel posed challenges, including delays, cancellations, and extreme weather conditions. Severe thunderstorms in the Netherlands caused temporary evacuation of the Music Meeting Festival site, although Daniel Erdmann’s indoor concert the following day proceeded without issue.
- Collaboration: Transparent communication among all parties—venues, festivals, management, and artists—was essential to managing logistics and maintaining clarity on financial arrangements.
Artistic and Audience Engagement
Despite the challenges, the tour delivered artistically and attracted enthusiastic audiences. Highlights included:
- Music Meeting Festival: A sold-out event day with an audience of 300.
- Public Debate: Daniel Erdmann participated in a panel discussion on green touring at Music Meeting Festival, alongside Maria Clara Espinel (Centro Nacional de las Artes, Colombia) and moderated by Gwendolenn Sharp (The Green Room).
Audience turnout for the concerts was strong, with most tickets sold in the week leading up to the events, demonstrating growing interest in new European projects.
Feedback and Reflections
The Therapie de Couple Green Pilot Tour highlighted both the rewards and complexities of sustainable touring.
Successes:
- The tour served as a powerful example of how collaboration across borders can promote sustainability and awareness within the music industry.
- It demonstrated that, with proper planning, even international projects can significantly reduce their environmental impact.
Challenges:
- High travel costs required additional funding and careful budget management.
- Long train journeys, while eco-friendly, were tiring for the musicians, particularly when carrying instruments.
- Extreme weather caused disruptions, highlighting the increasing impact of climate change on event planning.
- Organising the tour required substantial effort, with nearly 200 emails exchanged, underscoring the workload and digital carbon footprint involved.
Open communication and transparency in all aspects of planning, especially financial allocation, were critical to the tour’s success. The experience reinforced the importance of clear coordination among all stakeholders to minimise misunderstandings and optimise outcomes.
The Therapie de Couple Green Pilot Tour was a valuable initiative, made possible by the EJN Green Pilot Tour grant. While it highlighted the effort and commitment required to make sustainable touring viable, it also showcased how such practices can inspire audiences, engage artists, and pave the way for more environmentally conscious approaches in the music industry.
Links:
https://musicmeeting.nl/en/artist/all-ears-panel
https://musicmeeting.nl/en/artist/daniel-erdmanns-therapie-de-couple
https://theglasshouseicm.org/read-watch-listen/going-green-daniel-erdmanns-eco-jazz-adventure/
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BahvEa62G6gyMKG/
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/6hHYp7HtXArv1iHc/
