by Barry Newman
Copyright 2000 - Cosmic Debris Musicians Magazine - Issue #66 - May, 2000
...from the world's biggest shows...
...to the Cowichan Valley...
...a candid chat with BARRY SANFORD-KNOWLES...
Folks in Duncan might know him as the fellow who helped set up the immaculate acoustics and sound system at the Cowichan Theatre... but few may be familiar with his remarkable life and career.
For many years, Barry Sanford-Knowles was the man in charge of sound production at many of the world's most spectacular rock shows, operas and musicals... from THE WHO, PINK FLOYD and THE ROLLING STONES to THE LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA, THE ROYAL SHAKESPEARE COMPANY and LA SCALA OPERA.
And during the headspinning days during the "British Invasion", Barry was with the BBC... either working as a camera man or running the sound on national TV shows "Top of The Pops", "6/5 Special" and "Old Grey Whistle Test"... with acts such as JETHRO TULL, DEEP PURPLE, JIMI HENDRIX, URIAH HEAP, ROXY MUSIC, BLACK SABBATH, YES...
In many ways, the unpretentious Mr. Sanford-Knowles is what one might call the epitome of the "been-there / done-that" kinda guy.
Born and raised in Uganda (local nurses taught him Swahili before he learned English), Barry's initial education was at the no-nonsense Prince of Wales School for Boys at Gil Gil. It was here that one of his instructors managed to acquire a German-made, left-handed cello for Barry, which enabled him to join the school band and go on band trips to South Africa.
Barry has fond memories of Thursday evenings when he was able to get away from his boarding school and go into town to chat with tribal elders and listen to the drums. His father helped instill in him a deep respect for the local culture and wildlife... and Barry still has fond memories of Uganda.
After graduating from Gil Gil at age fifteen, he went straight to England and the Sciences Program at Cambridge University... electronics and transistors were the new thing. This is also where he got exposure to the black American blues musicians on British radio... Leadbelly, Howlin' Wolf, Blind Lemon, Fats Domino, Little Richard, Chuck Berry...
Barry learned guitar and got a right-handed Fender Esquire (which he played left-handed) and began working in bands... 7:30-to-midnight dancehall gigs with a ten-minute break... for £10 per night (for the whole band).
By chance, it was BBC, rather than an aircraft factory or some other industrial facility, to where Barry was transferred for work experience and eventual apprenticeship. During this time (1962 to 1963), he became an apprentice cameraman with BBC, where he also worked on his sound and light apprenticeships.
Not far from the studios in Hammersmith were The Greyhound Pub and The Hammersmith Palais. It was at venues such as these where Barry and other techs did a lot of experimenting and sharing of ideas with innovative sound techniques and sound gear... much of the technology which we take for granted, was then in it's infancy. Barry was working right alongside musicians such as John Mayall, Eric Clapton, Paul Butterfield, The Nice, the Rolling Stones...
"A lot of people might not realize that Keith Richards was meticulous with his amp setups and guitar tunings." Barry remarked. "He'd share tips with players such as Chuck Berry... it was a time of innovation for musicians too."
"The technological advances with all sound gear during the '60s were much like the rapid computer advances of the '90s." Barry added.
Barry would create unique devices such as echo units made from two tape recorder heads (they got a lot of use until Roland came out with a more portable "Space Echo").
By 1965, Barry became Sound Production Manager for one of five crews for Theatre Projects. The company gradually expanded to thirty crews.
In 1969, Barry was promoted to Senior Production Manager for Theatre Projects' European Division, and in 1971, he became the Production Manager for all the Americas and Asia.
Most acts generally brought in their own soundmen to do the mixing during the actual performances, but Barry was in charge of setting up all the sound gear; making sure everything worked; and doing the initial balance (occasionally operating the mains during the initial part of the show). And these were HUGE concerts...
For THE WHO: 100 speakers per side; 20-tons of P/A gear; six Customized Midas 12-track boards... multiplied by 4 complete crews.
For the EMERSON, LAKE & PALMER concerts, each crew would have seventeen trucks. It would take four days to set up... so four crews were required! Each day, the actual band would travel by plane to the next prepared stage.
For the ROLLING STONES "Sticky Fingers Tour", Barry required about twenty-five to thirty trucks for each crew!
Stage layouts were usually drawn out about six weeks prior to the show... Barry would figure out the required gear and the necessary budgets.
"In those days, the rigging was made of steel, whereas today it's mostly aluminum," Barry pointed out, "and due to many technological advances, the sound gear represents a smaller proportion of the total tonnage than does the lighting gear nowadays."
"I noticed a big difference in the attitude of the British and European musicians, in comparison with the Americans. The latter tended to take their roles very seriously, while the British and European players often treated their jobs like it was a joke of sorts... "
"European audiences are different too. They tend to go out for the music first... and the beer second. Overall, it seems the opposite is true in Canada," Barry added, "and in Canada, the distances between gigs also make it really difficult for the musicians."
"I also noticed that many North American sound crews do everything backwards," he remarked, "they'd build their sound around the drums, while I'd build the sound around the vocals first... and I'd use different speaker cabinets for vocals, drums, guitars... individual speakers work more efficiently if they're having to handle only a certain range of frequencies."
These tours were grueling work... usually 35 to 40 days non-stop... and ALWAYS with some crisis to deal with. The quality of the local crews varied immensely; sometimes union problems would affect concerts in the smaller centres.
Because Barry was in charge of up to four crews per tour, he was constantly on the move between the four different locations of setup. In Europe, this was tough enough... but in North America and Asia, the greater distances in between cities really took a toll on his health.
"At a WHO concert, after my work was all done, I was so exhausted that I actually fell asleep right behind Pete Townsend's amplifier. I slept through the entire show."
In 1979, Barry decided it was time to take a break. He took an extended holiday in Canada and ended up staying in Edmonton for a year, where he was an advisor in getting the Northlands Colisseum up to par.
Barry also got a bit of exciting work for the CBC as a spare camera man, doing close-up action shots at hockey games.
In 1982, the Cowichan Theatre heard about him (through Ronnie Prophet's manager) and invited Barry to the Island to look into improving. the Theatre's sound. Barry was amazed at the quality of the facility... and he moved to Duncan to work as an Assistant Technical Director for the Cowichan Theatre.
Together with Technical Director Brent Classen and fellow Assistant Technical Director Dave Barton, Barry helped plan the structural reinforcements and install the gear required to make the Cowichan Theatre the remarkable venue which it is today.
"The Cowichan Theatre is an incredible place to perform and work in," remarked Barry. "A large portion of the local public don't realize the quality of the facility and the crew."
"It would be nice to see more local performers take advantage of what the Cowichan Theatre has to offer," he added.
Since arriving in the Cowichan Valley, Barry has worked closely with various local musicians and projects, which include running monitors for The Islands Folk Festival for six years in a row.
He'd like to see more co-operation among local musicians and music industry workers... perhaps an association of sorts to share ideas and info on any aspect which might improve the local music scene. Anyone interested is welcome to email Barry Sanford-Knowles at: barrysk1@home.com
