Playing live

[skinut2234]

I'm playing a huge gig this weekend- (prob biggest ever)- I'm really starting to get nervous about the "lead" parts I need to play- I practice over and over but I'm worried about nerves....Any tricks in case I blank out??

 

[Skipp]

Yup. First of all - don't be nervous. Really no reason to

Secon of all - if you do mess up - never EVER stop playing. just continue whatever you do and pretend nothing happened.

Apart from your band - there's really a small chance anyone will notice

 

[Spherical]

Secon of all - if you do mess up - never EVER stop playing. just continue whatever you do and pretend nothing happened.

Apart from your band - there's really a small chance anyone will notice

Great advice from Skipp - it's always surprising how little the audience notices mistakes in a performance, unless you stop playing or otherwise make it obvious. The number of times I've come off stage thinking I've played terribly, only to be congratulated by loads of strangers in the audience saying it was superb.

So do your best, try to stay calm, and if you play something wrong, just keep going as best you can and pretend nothing happened

 

[Skipp]

You see... there are several types of people in the audience...

1. The usual friend

That's someone you know and who's there to support you and your band. Whatever you do, and whatever you play they will think it's awesome!

2. Friends of friends and the usual mob that barges into the club

Those are very similar to the first group except there is a chance someone won't like
the type of music you're playing - Again this has nothing to do with your mistakes. if someone's not into rock - they won't fully enjoy the show anyway.

3. Chit-chatters

The ones that are there only because someone else is there they're interested in.
They spend 99% of the gig blabbing to their friends so they won't even notice a thing that's happening on stage. Sure they will hear some hammering
in the background but what the hell...who cares - they're here to talk to someone anyway.

4. The listeners

Almost instnct... Those are the people that actually came to LISTEN to your preformance (mostly musicians themselves). They will hear the mistakes
but won't point them out - they will give you criticism but followed by arguments and suggestions

5. Fail-band members

What ever you play, and whatever you do on stage won't be good enough for them.
They will tell you "Yea... you were good" with a lemon-smile on their face if you ask them bout the gig - but once you turn your back they will start
talking crap about you and your band - again, nothing to do with your playing, just pure jelousy.

So there - you see... there's really nothing to worry about

 

[Spherical]

4. The listeners

Almost instnct... Those are the people that actually came to LISTEN to your preformance. They will hear the mistakes but won't point them out - they will give you criticism but followed by arguments and suggestions

And even the listeners won't notice half of your mistakes. The sound quality in most venues hides a multitude of sins The other thing to remember is that you're blatantly aware of a wrong note because your finger felt wrong as you played it, and if you take pride in your playing, every tiny error is a huge blunder. But to the audience, especially anyone unfamiliar with the music, it'll come across either as a tiny slip-up, or go completely unnoticed.

The worst on-stage blunders are where you have some MIDI problem that leaves a huge, top-volume chord hanging after you take your hands off the keyboard, just as the rest of the band go into a subtle quiet section....and you have to go and start fiddling with rack units to see which one needs resetting....

 

[jmemcse]

Showmanship and presentation have a greater audience impact than a flawless recital.