Mason's Barre

Overview:

From DJ Aaron A:

1. The space for cocktails/social hour were in the same space as the reception/dinner was. The ceremony is one or two floors above. They had only one working elevator at the time i was working there, so make sure someone asks which stairwell they can use when they do a gig there.

2.I was told there was a house mic, but did not get a chance to use it. However, I'm not sure if thats for the ceremony space or for the reception space.

3.loadin and parking was a little tricky.  ill give you both their response and my experience at my gig.
"You can load in the back alley if you wish or you can park on the street and use our side door. Please let me know what you prefer.  "

"The best ramp to use is the City Center one - you have to drive around the block and enter on 7th, but I believe it is $5-6 unless there is an event.  Walking distance it is about half a block and kitty-corner from us."

Try to get them to use the back alley way and have it setup/confirmed ahead of time with their staff. It is a locked/gated alleyway that may have shared access with other businesses. The manager had not yet arrived, and I think they were the only ones with a key, so be sure to also inform them of your arrival time when you contact them!

If you cannot get the temporary alleyway access, your only other choices are to park on the sides of the (one-way) street in front of/ near the bar, and they are usually very limited. I was lucky enough to grab a parking spot right out front when i loaded in, but when i left, there were 0 options and had to park illegally. I asked them about the alleyway but they wouldnt let me do that for some reason. I forget why.  So basically, try to work out as many details as you can regarding parking ahead of time!

I parked at the city center ramp as they suggested, but it ended up costing me 17$. A better bet may have been the lot parking on first ave on the same block as the restaurant, but im not sure how they work for 8-10 hour parking.

Someone helped me load my stuff out while i kept an eye on my gear/truck, which was nice, but he thought it necessary to say "if theres a tip in it for me", which shoudlnt really be the case if the venue was taking care of you properly in the first place. Downtown gigs can be a little crazy for parking/loadin, and the venue should know this for their particular location and assist you accordingly.

Thats pretty much it. Let me know if i left anything out! This was an idea that I suggested to Mike about a month ago, and im glad to see its being implemented(perhaps in been in the works for awhile, i dont know)! I'm glad I can help potentially save a future DJ from some grief/trouble at that location. 

Load In:

Be sure to ask in advance. The back alleyway is the easiest way to load-in, but they'll have to know you're coming to make sure the alleyway is not locked. Otherwise, you'll have to park on the street.

Challenges:

If you're doing a ceremony, you'll be two floors up from the main reception space, so have a plan as to how to play music after the ceremony concludes.

Aside from that, it sounds like the cocktail/dinner/dance is all on the same floor, which makes things easy. Call ahead to ensure.

Additional Venue Call Questions:

Where would you like me to load-in?

May I load in at (time)?

Is the cocktail/dinner/dance all in the same location?

Is there a house microphone I can use?

Website:

http://www.events.masonsmn.com/masons-restaurant-and-barre/

The Knot:

None