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Lead Guitarist and Backup Singer Wanted
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Gonzo's Nose is sad to announce that Kevin "Three-String" Schutt, our good friend, founding member of the band, and our guitarist for ten years, has decided to leave the band to do other things. (He seems to think that pursing two master's degrees simultaneously will get in the way of Rock.)
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We are currently conducting a search for a lead guitarist and backup singer who can fill his shoes.
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Qualifications 
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Although the following qualifications are flexible to a certain degree, we are specifically seeking someone with (a) classical training and the rigor that goes with it, and (b) someone who has at least five years' experience as a lead guitarist in a performing rock band.
Our expectations are VERY high. Gonzo's has been the most popular band in the Washingon, D.C. area for almost ten years, and we believe that Kevin is one of the best guitarists in the area. Our next guitarist needs to be technically and musically skilled, and must be able to figure out and play songs, as recorded, pretty much note for note, on short notice (typically within a week). In addition, there are many songs where the guitar must emulate multiple guitars, or synth parts, or a combination of such things, and it's up to the guitarist to figure out what to do and how to do it.
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In addition, we are looking for someone who can perform light background vocals. By "light," we mean that perhaps 25% of the songs we play require some bolstering during choruses -- harmony as well as a doubling of melody.
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About the Job
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The job is for a lead guitarist (primary role) who can sing some backups (secondary role). The person we hire will be a full member of the band with equal cut and equal responsibility and equal say in what songs we do and what gigs we take. On the business side of things, we do everything ourselves, and the person would be expected to share the duties there, too. That means things like making up set lists for shows, hanging posters at venues, participating in venue walkthroughs, etc.
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About the Band
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Gonzo's Nose is a semi-professional rock band, officially a small business (a general partnership with a formal partnership agreement) that makes a fair amount of money and pays its taxes to the IRS. At bottom, however, we do this for fun. While we do try to earn as much money as possible, it's secondary to us enjoying ourselves. Therefore, we don't take crappy gigs even if they pay great. And the social side is very important; we do a lot together and we're looking for someone who is going to be a friend as much as someone who is a great musician.
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Gonzo's Nose requires a very serious and exclusive time commitment: on average, between 12 and 20 hours per week for rehearsal and shows. This does NOT include personal practice time, which is up to individual band members but can be substantial, because everyone is expected to come to rehearsal already having learned their parts completely. Band practice is not regularly scheduled, but typically occurs on Saturdays before shows, 2-3 times per month (in Falls
Church) from about 4:00 to about 7:00, supplemented by an occasional special practice. We play five to six shows a month all year long, trying to keep one weekend a month free of all gigs. We book gigs up to a year in advance (we typicaly have more gigs booked than what appears on our website), which means that we all have to deal with having our personal schedules (like vacations) either nailed down far in advance, or else wedged in between gigs. In-town gigs generally take up an entire night from 7:00pm to 2:30am.
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Some shows are out of town (up to five hours' drive away) and require transportation and hotel rooms. In addition, we often take parts of Fridays off for these trips, so it is critical that members have flexibility with their day jobs.
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This is obviously a very large amount of time (personal practice will be VERY demanding at the outset, since there will be over 100 songs that need to be learned quickly), and Gonzo's tends to become the primary social outlet for the band members!
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Equipment and Expenses
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Obviously we expect that our guitarist will own his or her own equipment. It is expected that if any special effects are needed to perform any song that we select, the guitarist would purchase appropriate pedals or other gear. Otherwise, there probably won't be any initial monetary commitment (for example, there will be no need to buy into the P.A.). Note, however, that we do sink a lot of our profits back into the band for mailings, new and replacement equipment, promotional items, paying for the web page domain, cheesy costumes for 80s Nights, etc.
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Audition Schedule
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We hope to fill the position as soon as possible -- hopefully in the early summer 2006. Some gigs (where Kevin is unavailable) could occur as early as the fall, with a clean cutover date very early in 2007. We are currently talking to prospective guitarists by phone, and will invite several for auditions. Anyone who is interested may contact Steve at steve@gonzosnose.com or Adrian at afelts@gonzosnose.com.
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