Spanish Tapas Evening Hardy's
Spanish Tapas Evening Hardy’s.
Yesterday Saturday 31st July 2021 I played Spanish Flamenco and Classical Guitar for Hardy’s.
Hardy’s is a farm shop and cafe in Farndon, just south of Newark on Trent, Nottinghamshire.
I understand that this is the first time that Hardy’s have put on an evening event.
They decided to make this event Spanish themed.
Organising this Tapas Evening
Although I do enjoy playing at all of my engagements it is not every time that I feel compelled to write a report.
This Spanish Tapas Evening at Hardy’s was exceptionally good and I would like to explain why.
The planning leading up to the event was was thorough and helpful to me.
I know exactly when to arrive and playing times.
On arrival I found that I had been allocated a perfect playing location.
This is actually quite important.
I was in a spacious corner with my own table, easy access to electric socket and a door to my right.
Due to this perfect positioning no one bumped in to me which made me comfortable.
Furthermore, as I was not too close to any table I could play properly.
The perfect playing environment
That needs a little explaining.
To play Spanish flamenco guitar properly you need to work the strings properly.
This was you can correctly produce all vibrato, glissando, rasgueado and the full range of flamenco techniques.
If you are too close to a table you tend to tone it down to the detriment of the music.
No such problem here.
I used a very low amplification just to help the music reach all corners of the room.
In fact, the owner was kind enough to run a sound check with me and suggest the ideal volume level.
When you are playing the guitar, it can be a little difficult to perceive how other people are hearing it.
With this all taken care of I was in the best of moods to start playing.
Flamenco Guitar music for the Tapas Evening at Hardy’s
To be honest I am never really sure how people will react to my music.
Authentic Spanish flamenco guitar music can be a little forceful.
To avoid overload I always start with a few very soft and lovely Spanish classical pieces.
I feel this is a way to ease my audience in.
To give people a chance to get accustomed to the sound of live guitar.
Applause from the tables encouraged me and I moved onto some of the more robust flamenco pieces.
The natural acoustics of this room are very good indeed.
Several times I pulled back from the microphone and yet the guitar was crystal clear and perfectly audible.
Well, people were just as happy with the flamenco pieces.
It must have been about an hour before I took my first break.
I offered to play a longer second set.
Eventually the evening moved to its natural close.
I am most grateful to all of those people who took the moment to let me now how much they had enjoyed my Spanish guitar playing.
More about my music and events.
Here on this website, you can see videos and listen to sound clips.
There is also a dedicated page about my playing at events.
Please do feel free to just get in touch.
Whatever your Spanish themed event we can discuss together with no obligation of course.