Here’s another guest post from Michael S. Armentrout - music fan, lover of King’s X and future concert promoter.
Gordon Lightfoot once said, “You just get the vibes of your surroundings and it rubs off on you.” For better or worse, our environment has an effect on our performance. Think about how you feel when you play a familiar place for the 20th time. Now compare that with how you feel when you play a new city and/or venue? You are the same band right? Playing the same songs right? Why the different feelings? Our environment has an interesting way of increasing anxiety. This effect is multiplied when something unexpected happens. How do you minimize this effect? The first step is preparing physically and mentally for the things you can control – namely your reaction. This week’s series will focus on knowing your environment…
Bobby Owsinski - bobby@bobbyowsinski.com
Author of How To Make Your Band Sound Great
photo by Tambako the Jaguar
Getting to a venue and finding out that you’re playing in the dark because the lighting is poor or non-existent. The best thing is to buy a small lighting rig since they can be had for the price of a small amplifier these days. Lights should be considered an integral part of your show and you should always assume that the lighting will be inadequate to make you look good. Even if the lighting rig at the venue is sufficient, your lights can always be used for additional impact. At the very least, carry some colored gels with you since most lighting gels at venues are usually washed out from constant use. It’s amazing how good you can look with a fresh gel.
The stage is too big. This doesn’t sound like a problem on the surface, but I’ve seen too many bands try to take advantage of a large stage when they’re not used to it by setting up too far away from one another and completely loosing their timing and balance. A large stage requires some getting used to and sometimes even some different gear if the monitor system is inadequate. Stay set up as close to one another as you’re normally comfortable with if it’s your first time on a large stage, and gradually spread out in subsequent gigs (if there are any) as you become familiar with the situation.
The stage is too small. So you have a 5 piece band but the stage is only big enough for the drummer and maybe the bass player? Not to worry, use the stage as a drum riser and take as much space as you need out onto the dance floor. You’ll need it to put on any kind of decent show and being scrunched together on a tiny stage doesn’t do anyone any good, if you can help it. This is where having your own lighting rig really helps because it can act as sort of a demarcation line of your “new stage.” This only works if you’re already pretty good and can get the audience quickly on your side and doesn’t work if you’re just starting out.
Stan Wiest - stan@stanwiest.com
President – A. Stan Wiest Music
http://www.stanwiest.com
I was playing a wedding on a charter boat in New Jersey. The boat left the dock and was on the way to pick up the bride and groom. Our high end amplifier for our PA system takes AC current. The boat only had DC current. We had no sound system- no keyboards-no vocals-nothing. The amplifier shut down. The boat captain complained that I was brining extra equipment on the boat. Fortunately I always carry 2 back up amplifiers-of different power levels. The amplifier with the lowest power level was able to work with the DC current and the wedding was a success. By the time the boat picked up the bride and groom I had the connections changed-bride and groom never knew how close them came to disaster.
I was playing a reception for the actor TONY RANDAL on at a upper end nursery on Long Island’s north shore Gold Coast. The power supply was extremely limited-not enough power for our system. The circuit breakers kept cutting out. The typical band would have been stuck. I always bring a high end voltage regulator just in case. I connected the voltage regulator to the power supply and the band plugged into the voltage regulator. The reception was saved -again without the voltage regulator there would have been no band.
Can you relate?
As Stephen Covey is famous for saying, “Between stimulus and response is the ability to choose.” Poor lighting, little stage space, too much stage space, loss of power; all of these are apt to happen at some point. How we respond speaks volumes about professionalism and how serious one’s craft/art is taken. It is often the correct choice that makes a performance a success or failure. Have you experienced any of the above? How did you respond? Leave a comment and share with others. Until next time…
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12/4/2009
11:49 am
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