How to keep the fire burning

[charlie]

Hey guys,

Over the years of playing I'm sure everyone has experienced ups and downs of gigging. Whether the audience is non-responsive or whether the venue is not your favorite place to play, there is still a certain level of performance that is required, if by noone else...by yourself. This is where this thread will take us. How do you keep that fire burning? What are some things you can do to keep things interesting not only to your audience, but to yourself. I made a short list of things that I do to help me.
1. Keep learning new tunes - very important! (worn out tunes boggs everybody down)
2. Invest in equipment that is going to make you sound better. (If you sound better to yourself, the audience will sense your confidence and appreciate it.)
3. Book the jobs for enough money to make it worthwhile. (With all the work that is involved that most audiences will never see, or for that matter even care about, a good paycheck certainly hepls smooth out the bumps)
4. Share ideas like on this Forum. (I'm so glad I have a place to vent - LOL)
5. Seek out performers you admire and see what they're doing to make their shows more appealing.
6. Take pride in your own musicianship, whether the place is packed or empty.
7. Try tunes that stretch your abilities. Once accomplished, you've learned that you can do more than what you thought.
8. Dont be afraid to hear some constructive criticism. One of the best things that I ever learned was from a citique I received in college. I was doing an audition for a music scholarship...things were going great...I thought to myself...hey, try that other tune...well, it didnt go as smooth al I would have liked. Afterwards, I was told if I had just stuck with that first tune and not attempted the "other" tune, I would have won the scholarship. Lesson learned.
9. Listen to great musical talent - recorded or live. It's always a special thing to be inspired and feel that joy for the music again.
10. Last, but not least....be able to laugh at yourself and not take yourself too seriously. It IS entertainment after all.

The above is not in any particular order, just as it came out of my head. LOL

Charlie

[Emerald Midi]

Hi Charlie,

I think you post should be required reading for all us gigging musicians. It should also be printed and read frequently to remind us of some of the very deep fundamentals that can often be taken for granted by those of us who have been at this craic (game) for more years than we care to remember.

Keeping it fresh is one of the things I try to do. My experience is that even doing different versions of the same old songs can be a great help, too. But I agree with your comment about keeping the programme fresh and new, which conversely keeps us fresh and new also. When it's too samey everyone get bored and when you're bored the gigs just seem to last forever!

I'm looking forward to seeing how this thread develops.

[Tone_Deff (Musicmaker)]

Hi Guys,

Interesting posts, with which I agree in every way. In the area I live, we are rapidly losing venues, as more and more people are drinking at home (Its quite a depressed area!), and I think the smoking ban will force the few Clubs and Pubs that are still using live music to look at their costs and whether live acts fees produce enough extra income to justify their presence.

I am seriously considering going around the Pubs free of charge, and working for tips - I did it in America, and sometimes took more money than I would have got for a performance fee. Reason I say that, is that if you still get the 'Buzz' - the Adrenaline rush, from performing, and are constantly appraising the reactions from the audience, and your enjoyment of giving others pleasure, you will certainly - I would have thought, get good tips.

My wife holds the World Record I believe, for a tip - 100 dollars for a song, when performing at a Lodge in Sitka, Alaska!!!

Regards,

Tony

[charlie]

Hey Tony,

I feel, by your response, that you are addicited to "live performance" like I am. LOL! There is nothing greater on this planet when you, the music and the audience reach that "special" plateau. You know the one I'm talking about. It's that level when your music is actually transcending where you are. It might happen to you in the tiniest of clubs/lounges or in front of 10,000 people. For that brief moment in time, you and your music are greater than the sum of it's parts. The audience is loving every single note you sing or play, the energy level is totally electric. I could go on, but I dont know if there are words that actually describe how that feels. I live for those moments. WOW! Got a little carried away...LOL. Anyway, thanks for replying. I just wanted to know how other musicians deal that issue of keeping the desire.

Charlie

[shyamwestwind]

Charlie, never have truer words been said. Once on stage, everything else is forgotten and when the music, the audience and the feel merge in , its just another world. a world of our very own
Music transcends everything
Cheers
With warm regards
Shyam

[geraint]

A very thought provoking thread, and all so very true.
Live performance is a drug which is very hard to kick, and that adrenaline rush when you've got it right is fantastic.

Another tip which I was taught was to regularly rehearse in front of a large mirror, so that you can see what you and your set up look like to the audience, I also occasionally video part of a performance with the same purpose.

[gibbo]

Hey Tony,
I like your idea about the tip jar, I have a mate in L.A. who makes about $300 a night playing for tips.
As for the World Record tip contest;
How about a tip of $100 for NOT playing a song.
A guy once asked me if I did American Pie. I said, "I do it on request but, to be honest, I'm sick to death of playing it!" (I'd probably done it thousands of times by then.)
He laughed and said, "I'm sick of hearing it too, I'll give you a tip if you promise not to play it!"
I cracked up and agreed that we'd have a Pie-free gig.
Later that night he came up to thank me for a great night and gave me $100 saying, "This is for not playing American Pie!"
I laughed and asked, "Is there anything else you'd like me to NOT play?"

[charlie]

You know, as I read the responses to this thread, I am inclined to believe that music IS the universal language. It can communicate to people of all walks of life. Race, creed,color,nationality......are no barriers to the power that music can deliver. I believe that music is the song of our souls. We can convey great happiness and joy. We can convey great sorrow and sadness. The whole human experience can be illustrated using the vehicle of music. I am so glad that I have music to pour out emotions from my soul. Otherwise, they would remain trapped in me and I would have to carry that burden around, or explode and make a horrible mess. LOL! Geraint, great tip about the mirror thing. I do that already, if not accidently on purpose, rehearsing new midis...you know, all performing musicians have a certain amount of vanity. Comes with the territory, and not necessarily a bad thing either, unless of course you take it too far. So glad to hear from those of you that want to keep that fire burning. And Tony and Gibbo, as far as the tip jar thing, I know several musicians that play for tips only. And, they fair off way better than my duo does. I think it's because they have nothing to lose. There's no guaranteed money up front. The pressure's off to fulfill an obligation. It's just "get up there and make people enjoy themselves." I believe people can feel that and respond accordingly by dropping money in the tip jar. Anyway, sorry for being so longwinded, but this is a subject dear to my heart.

Charlie

[gibbo]

Very nicely put, Charlie, I couldn't agree more.

[rogerb]

I do so agree with all the above. One thing I try to do to stay fresh is to vary the running order - it saves me and the regulars getting too much into a rut. Throw a few gags in - laughter is a great ice breaker. Most of all look as if you're enjoying yourself, even when you're not, smiling is very infectuous.