Job Opportunity: Venue Manager at The Cooler

Improvised Music Company is currently seeking candidates for a part-time contractor role as Venue Manager at The Cooler.

Job Title

Cooler Venue Manager (independent contractor, 3-days per week guaranteed, flexible timing, with some evenings and weekends required for events).

About IMC and The Cooler

Improvised Music Company (IMC), founded in 1991, is an Arts Council funded resource for Irish musicians and a specialist music promoter for jazz, ethnic and other creative music in Ireland. We produce festivals, intimate and large scale concerts of Irish and international jazz, experimental and world music artists. Today, we’re Ireland’s largest specialist music producer, with hands-on involvement in many aspects of music making throughout the island, from festival programming, concert promotion, touring, education and audience development. We also work on behalf of Irish jazz and improvising artists, assisting them in performance opportunities, knowledge of the music industry and provide resource support for their activities.

The Cooler is a landmark collaboration between Improvised Music Company and multi-disciplinary arts venue The Complex. A former Fyffes banana-ripening unit in The Complex building, amidst the fruit and vegetable market area of Dublin’s North inner city, The Cooler has been redeveloped as a new home for jazz and improvised music in the heart of Dublin 7.

Open since January 2022 as a fully-equipped, community-driven creative space for rehearsal, development and professional workshops, The Cooler is also active as an intimate, small-capacity, club-style performance space, with regular evening concerts and events.

The Candidate

We are looking for someone who can share in our vision for the Cooler and help us get there. We are looking for an individual who is a well rounded problem solver with a high degree of initiative and can demonstrate an ability to get results without endless back and forth. There are many unforeseen aspects of managing a space that we cannot plan for, so we are looking for someone who is practical, can figure things out on their own, or with the help of some YouTube videos, and can get the job done. This person must be able to wire a plug, or drill a hole as much as they can organise things - someone practical, hands-on, and resourceful, who can work independently and with guidance from the IMC team to solve any problems that arise.

Where a candidate has strong sound engineering skills and experience, there will be additional work opportunities for engineering concerts, at an additional engineer’s fee - up to approx 40 shows per year.

The Vision

Our vision for the space is that it is a well specced rehearsal space for artists that can be converted quite quickly into a performance space for paying audiences. This essentially requires 2 configurations ready at all times and a process for converting the space to suit our needs

Because the space is small, we need “a place for everything and everything in its place” mentality at all times.

We want this to be a one stop shop for recording, live music, both aurally and visually, And we want the space to have dedicated systems in place to manage different types of people: artists, audiences, other professionals.

Below some of the points that The Cooler manager will be responsible for:

Ongoing Development

• Minor repairs including press/shelf-building, running conduit, hanging drapes (stage blacks etc)
• Painting/touching up items within the space
• Figuring where things go and how to get them
• Inventory management
• Assisting with Sound Mix and Vision Mix Stations

Space Maintenance (regular)

• Emptying bins, hoovering and tidying Cooler and bar
• Repair/maintain seating and space, e.g. painting etc
• Regular inventory of all rehearsal items in Cooler
• Post-event inventory of all IMC equipment in The Cooler.
• Tracking any professional repairs or replacement items needed
• Basic maintenance of other equipment eg music stands/mic stands - replacing small parts etc.
• Changing of lockbox/door codes and communication of changes to IMC/artists
• Identifying any communication issues/education needed for Cooler members to use the space and equipment safely and acting on these.
• Identifying any communication issues/education needed for guest performers to use the space and equipment safely and acting on these.

Sound

• Basic familiarity with PA/sound, identifying any issues with
• Connecting/reconnecting rehearsal PA in the space
• Maintenance/regular checks of rehearsal microphones/cables, identifying issues etc.
• Managing piano tuning via a third party at regular intervals or prior to the piano being used for a professional engagement
• Basic drumkit maintenance - changing heads, identifying issues etc.
• Supervision of other equipment, keyboard, amps etc., regular checks and identifying any issues.
• Supervision of main performance PA

Lighting

• Basic familiarity with lighting, DMX and power
• Managing/resetting stage lighting/bar lighting where needed
• Moving lighting where required.

Space Management

• Where needed, managing any issues for artists rehearsing in The Cooler.
• Management of rehearsal schedules in The Cooler, any late amendments/cancellations or special requests.
• Where needed, induction for new members into The Cooler.
• Showing The Cooler to potential collaborators where needed.

Production Management

• Where needed, liaising with artists performing in The Cooler to confirm tech requirements, schedules etc.

Terms

This is a PART-TIME position for an independent contractor, which includes a 3 month probationary period. 3 days / week are guaranteed where desired by the contractor, at a rate of €140/day. The days are fairly flexible, with with some evenings and weekends required for events.

For a candidate who is also a suitably qualified and experienced sound engineer, there is a possibility of a related role as The Cooler's house engineer, with separate fees for engineering up to 40 gigs per year.

How to apply

Please submit a copy of CV with a minimum of 2 references and their contact details as well as a cover letter with a short introduction (approx. 200 words) outlining why you are the right person for this position.

Please send the above by email ONLY to jobs@improvisedmusic.ie, including your full contact details.

Only shortlisted applicants selected for interview will be contacted.

Applicants selected for an interview will be asked to give a short presentation to be delivered to the interview committee. Details of this will be communicated in advance.

Interviews will take place at The Cooler on Wednesday 12th March.

Please insure your application includes:

• A Cover Letter
• A Curriculum Vitae
• Names and contact details of two referees. References will only be taken up with approval from candidates.

Closing date for applications is 5:30pm on Tuesday 4th March.