• Changing the face of rehearsal space

    A grand piano in a room with a white bookcase and a red chest

    Steinway grand in Central London mews house | Visit on Tutti Photography: Ian Dingle

    Finding a decent place to rehearse can sometimes be a headache for musicians and bands. They also tend to be quite similar – windowless, neutral rooms with a minimal amount of space, lacking in any kind of inspiration for the creativity that happens in them. Tutti has been launched to change all that. It’s being billed as the Airbnb of rehearsal space, enabling artists to find spaces that are perfect for their every need, and also providing hosts with a simple and effective booking management and customer acquisition tool. Founder Gabriel Isserlis tells us how it all works.

    What does Tutti provide that existing rehearsal spaces don’t?

    We are helping musicians find spaces that are affordable, nearby, or inspiring. Everyone looks for something different in their rehearsal space. While some just want bare walls and zero distractions, others want to be inspired by their surroundings, while others are happy as long as there is tea & coffee available, and some are just looking for a space that is equally easy to get to for all members. We are working to fulfill all those needs and more. 

    Equally importantly, almost every rehearsal space out there currently has a different method for booking. Some have a booking system built into their website, while others ask musicians to email them, and a few have no online system at all and ask that people call them. While there is nothing innately wrong with each, it does take some time to enter new details in each time you try a new location. Our solution is to have every location work on one solution, so no matter where you play, the way you pay is the same – a simple and familiar system. 

    Gabriel Isserlis
    Gabriel Isserlis, Founder of Tutti
    You’ve recently expanded the platform from offering just music rehearsal space to other creative professions such as photographers and artists, was this the intention from the beginning or a natural development?

    This was always the intention, but we only felt comfortable trying it once we’d got the ball rolling on music. But it didn’t take long for us to realise we should have started with all creatives. Our offering is a lot more useful being open to many creatives rather than just one discipline.   

    Does a rehearsal space need to be soundproofed to be accepted on your site? 

    No. We accept any space specifically because there are so many artists out there who make little to no sound and don’t need to pay for the extra cost of a sound proofed room. Spaces that are not sound proofed mark themselves as such on our platform and only acoustic or low volume groups book those spaces.  

    Who is your site popular with at the moment?

    Because my family background is in classical music, and because we were music focused for the first few months, (having garnered support from Making Music, ISM, and the MU) that’s the discipline that we’ve made the biggest strides in. But we’re actively spreading the word in photography, film making, acting, and dancing circles. 

    What kind of feedback have you had so far from artists and venues?

    We’ve experienced some extremely positive feedback so far – both venues and artists love that it is free to sign up and use. A lot of them have stated that it’s an interesting take on the Airbnb model and have expressed interest to help us grow, for which we’re extremely grateful. 

    Our core values are:
    Inclusivity – everyone is welcome (our name literally means “All” in Italian)
    Collaboration – we promote working together to achieve a common goal
    Creativity – we are finding creative uses for under-utilised space.
    Church for hire Tutti
    St Michael’s Church | Visit on Tutti
    Have you had any unusual space requests or offerings?

    One of our listed spaces is a yurt which is essentially a large cone shaped tent. It’s a 40 min journey from the centre of the city but its entire purpose is to be a creative escape to a small group of artists, which is absolutely perfect for Tutti. Check out the Yurt here.

    We have also been in talks with a boat that contains a grand piano, which is a venue that often perks up ears when mentioned. 

    One of our most unusual bookings so far has been a therapist that likes to use theatrical surroundings to inspire her clients. An unusual but fantastic use of creative space. 

    The platform is London focused at the moment, where will you be expanding to next?

    That is currently undecided. We have a running tally of interest from different cities across the UK so when the time comes to decide we’ll take that heavily into account. But for now we’re 100% focused on London and nearby spaces.    

    You have an app in development, when are you planning to launch that?

    We are working to have the first version ready by the end of the year. However in order for that to happen, we need people to test it. If anybody is interested in giving feedback and ideas to the first Tutti app, email: beta@tutti.space 

    Tutti church
    St Mary Magdalene’s main hall | Visit on Tutti
    What are your biggest challenges ahead?

    Listing spaces. We are nearing 100 spaces now, which is great considering we only started a few months ago, but we’ve got a lot of work ahead of us. We’re aiming to list 300 spaces by the end of the summer and we’re actively recruiting volunteers to help us do that. If anyone is interested in volunteering, they should email: info@tutti.space

     

    Have a browse of all of Tutti’s spaces: tutti.space

    Tell us what you think @TakeitawayMusic