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Competition for gigs and fans is fierce, we know...

Saturday Dec 08, 2001.     By Greg Rolnick

Music Feed

It's easy for young musicians to fall into the paranoid mindset that every other band out there is "the enemy". Competition for gigs and fans is fierce, with everyone is looking for an edge over their adversaries. However, five years ago, a group of Chicago musicians and music industry professionals came together to try to allay musicians' fears and instill in them a sense of community. After all, as CHaT board member Dan deRamos points out, "No music fan has only one CD in their collection."

CHaT is the brainchild of Paul Natkin, a music photographer-turned-artist manager and concert promoter. Being mired in the Chicago music scene, he witnessed both a great deal of talent and underlying animosity and distrust. Realizing a greater need for unity among local musicians, Natkin took matters into his own hands and created the Chicago Harmony and Truth (CHaT) network.

Instead of competing against one another, Natkin worked diligently to foster a sense of kinship that would allow musicians and music industry professionals to pool their resources and give everyone involved a better shot at attaining their dreams.

After five years, CHaT has expanded to over 200 members (and counting), and the group's monthly meetings have moved from Natkin's living room to local clubs. Special guest speakers often join the meetings to help educate musicians on various areas of the music business. With anywhere from 40 to 80 people at any given meeting, the intimate atmosphere facilitates easier interaction between speaker and audience. In a bonus move for any band looking to promote upcoming gigs, every CHaT member is given one minute at the end of each meeting to pitch their band to the group.

To maintain organizational costs, membership in CHaT costs $30. However, members also get significant discounts at music and equipment stores, as well as increased access to sections of the CHaT Web site (including their extensive databases and gig listings for all members).

Even if you are not a member, the CHaT Web site, www.chatmusic.com) is an excellent tool. The site contains easy-to-use databases, which allows the user to hunt for clubs, press, production, lawyers, etc., as well as an up-to-date calendar of events.

CHaT has received strong support from the local music scene, and you can often hear mention of its meetings and members' gigs on the Sunday night local's show on several Chicago radio stations. "It's great to see the major radio players getting behind this worthy cause," commented Dan deRamos.

With a long-term goal of making CHaT more of the norm than an example -- and getting all local musicians to work together -- expect things to continue developing here in Chicago before taking the idea nationwide.

As is the case with any reputable music conference, CHaT's goal is musical education: the more you know about the industry, the less likely you are to make mistakes. However, while conferences often charge a fairly sizeable amount of money to attend, CHaT is well within the means of any group or solo artist.

Get involved with CHaT at upcoming events posted on their Web site: www.chatmusic.com)