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As an adult, I also play a lot of music. One of the bands I play with, Slang (A Def Leppard cover band), has been offered a spot at 4th and B downtown on Saturday night (May 30th). When I was checking with the "Turtle" last week after one of the parents alerted me to the article in the UT, I found that their show for Thursday had been cancelled due to the new license terms. The "Turtle" graciously offered to have us fill the slot left open with what amounted to a dress rehearsal with sound (and security). I don't know how it used to be at the "Turtle," but the sound on stage that night was top notch. It's too band our friends will have to venture downtown and back again to hear us play, but there aren't that many places that have live music in North County. Just to give you some more perspective, the CCMA co-sponsored a fund raiser last month at the Carlsbad venue the Oceanhouse that featured a battle of the bands (all under 18-years-old) with the top ten bands competing. I worked with the CCMA to setup and run sound. If it had been big enough, the "Turtle" would have been MUCH easier. By the way, the Oceanhouse had no problem keeping the bar open while all the participants were there (and you can bet we had NO problems with underage drinking). Yes, you can have events in the park or on the street. If you want a sound company to come out and run sound, expect to start paying them a minimum of $3,000 just to show up. Want to run your own sound? Expect to pay about $2,000 to buy sound equipment (it's not just the amps and speakers, you have a ton of cables, mics, etc. too) for a small group and then expect at least an hour at either end of your event to set up and tear down.— May 26, 2009 12:40 a.m.
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The "Turtle" has been a great place for recitals of the Children's Conservatory for Music Arts (CCMA). The CCMA has music programs that teach kids aspects of group dynamics and team work by learning songs together in small groups of five or six to make up a "rock band." I volunteer a lot around the CCMA and my 13-year-old son takes lessons there (they are a teaching studio). They have the capability to host their own recitals (and do many times a year). However, the "Turtle" has a much more capable sound system and full time staff that know how to run it. This allows the students and their families to experience more of a "live" show than we get at the studio. Every event I have been to with my son (and a few without him) where under 21 aged people were present, was very well managed (no I don't go to every show at the "Turtle"). At one of the first shows we went to, my son wondered out to the patio. Not knowing that this was an "off limits" area to people under 21 (I think I missed the sign), within 15 seconds a security person was escorting my son back to me and explaining the boundaries within the club. Just in case people who read this want some perspective: the CCMA is located in San Marcos. Many of their students including my son go to San Elijo Middle School (SEMS) in San Marcos (the San Marcos Unified School district) and San Marcos Unified School District elementary schools. All three of the drummers in the award winning SEMS Jazz Band (they took first place at Knottsberry Farm a few weeks ago), and the guitarist in the SEMS Jazz Band take lessons at the CCMA, and most have performed at the "Turtle" (the drummers are also part of the Award Wining Drumline at SEMS). The Jazz band played over Memorial Day weekend to support the Veterans with the city of Vista. These are the kinds of families that use the Jumping Turtle.— May 26, 2009 12:36 a.m.