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November 2008
Posts: 1119
Location: Michigan | My wife is urging me to play a couple of songs at local, very low key coffee house. The thought terrifies me. I was at the winter jam and could not make it through a song I can play in my sleep at home because I was nnnnneerrrvvvouuuss.
I watched Brad and Brian play at an open mic and they have a very relaxed fun attitude that escapes me.
Do you just dive in? Does confidence come quickly or slowly after many outings.
I can play OK and I don't think my voice would detract from the songs too much but...
I have no problems playing in church as I am one of many and I can hide behind the piano :) .
Any suggestions would be appreciated. |
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January 2006
Posts: 2120
Location: Chicago | Try finding a "partner-in-crime": if you can get comfortable rehearsing some tunes and achieving a level of "repeatablity" just one-on-one, you'll have a support structure when you take the show on the road. Worked for me! |
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November 2006
Posts: 3969
| You're already "playing out" if you're playing in your church band. Just dive in (worked for me). As Matt says "ain't no problem 100 gigs won't cure." |
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October 2007
Posts: 2711
Location: Vernon CT | Rich, I know exactly how you feel. My first time was a bit of a disaster and it wasn't even really my own doing (faulty house cables which due to my inexperience caused me to freeze up. I did finish the next 3 songs mistake free)
Anyway, the one thing that helped me and was told to me by many experienced musicians is that the Audience WANTS you to succeed. They WANT you to do well and they RARELY "hear" a mistake unless YOU make it obvious by stopping or doing something additionally that makes them aware of it (Making a face, groaning....) Play through it
The first one is the hardest,get through that and you will be fine. |
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December 2001
Posts: 7237
Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | My only advise is..
It's ok to feel "butterflies" when you get on stage.... just get them suckers to fly in formation and you'll be fine. |
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January 2006
Posts: 5881
Location: Colorado Rocky Mountains | Start when you're 4 years old. By the time you sign your first contract at 9, there's nothing to it. Incidently, you never want to be so comfortable in front of an audience that you take your performance totally for granted. You'll be flat and the audience will know it. A few butterflies during your opening number never hurt anybody. |
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Joined:
November 2008
Posts: 1119
Location: Michigan | Thanks for the advise guys, it is appreciated. |
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January 2009
Posts: 4535
Location: Flahdaw | I'm thinking of doing some open mics myself. I'm not too worried about being nervous up there...I'm more worried about forgetting lyrics, which I seem to do more and more these days. Does anyone out there use cheat sheets on stage? |
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Joined:
November 2006
Posts: 3969
| Originally posted by dark bar:
Does anyone out there use cheat sheets on stage? Abso-effing-lutely. Nothing wrong with that. Cliff has a neat device (looks like a Kindle) made specifically for that - load all your music/lyrics/chord sheets in pdf. Or, as Dave just pointed out a couple days ago, you can do a similar thing with the iPad (although that doesn't yet have a stand adapter). |
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August 2009
Posts: 602
Location: Hanau, Hessen, Germany | Twisted... there is only one advice: Just do it! You will never ever regret it. |
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December 2001
Posts: 10583
Location: NJ | if you are not nervous then you have a problem.
focus your eyes on the tip of the microphone that way you will not see the audience and can concentrate on what you are doing.
if is nice to look out from time to time and see smiles though |
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April 2004
Posts: 13303
Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | Originally posted by alpep:
if is nice to look out from time to time and see smiles though or the angry villagers so that you will have time to plan your escape. |
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Joined:
September 2006
Posts: 347
Location: Reno, NV | Can't imaging playing out. I get nervous just recording (video) myself playing in the comfort of my own home. The easiest songs I have played 100 times somehow I forget.
So I have no advice for you :-) |
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January 2009
Posts: 4535
Location: Flahdaw | I've said it before....I'm more nervous playing in front of a camera than I am a live audience. Don't know why that is??? |
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September 2003
Posts: 9301
Location: south east Michigan | All good advise so far.
About cheat sheets... If you are Cliff (shudder) and are doing a gazillion songs some level of cheat sheets are needed. If you are just doing 2 or 3 songs it's best, in my experience, not to use them. As weird as it sounds, cheat sheets have goofed me up at times. You'd think... If I get lost all I gotta do look down and I'm safe... Not so easy. In that brief instant it takes to look down and find your place, bad, bad things can and will happen. You're asking your brain to do one more thing when it's already plenty busy.
In the few days before play the songs over & over & over until you are sick of them. That way by the time you get up there the chords and words are not a problem and you can use the extra effort to act like you still enjoy the tune.
My worst real life nightmare was drawing a blank on the first words in Pretty Women. It don't get much worse than that. |
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November 2004
Posts: 4413
| Most important to remember is that the answer is NOT alcohol. |
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November 2006
Posts: 3969
| You're asking the wrong question, then.
(Seriously, tho, Clive is right. No more than 1 beer to calm the nerves a bit. Any more than that & you're guaranteed to screw up) |
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February 2008
Posts: 247
Location: Delaware | Originally posted by schroeder:
Most important to remember is that the answer is NOT alcohol. Oh yes it is ! But it must be administered in large doses to the members of the audience. |
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September 2003
Posts: 9301
Location: south east Michigan | Rich... Play a song at Huber. After that a coffee house will be a piece of cake. |
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January 2002
Posts: 14127
Location: 6 String Ranch | write out the words
then leave them at home
bring your favorite pick
and loose it on your way to the stage
don't bother to tune
have the wrong strap so you have to sit in an uncomfortable chair
then say fuck it and just do it anyway |
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Joined:
October 2005
Posts: 4075
Location: Utah | Originally posted by Beal:
write out the words
then leave them at home
bring your favorite pick
and loose it on your way to the stage
don't bother to tune
have the wrong strap so you have to sit in an uncomfortable chair
then say fuck it and just do it anyway Is that a lost verse from "Ironic"? |
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April 2004
Posts: 13303
Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | nice flysig
nice :cool: |
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Joined:
August 2002
Posts: 8307
Location: Tennessee | Originally posted by Beal:
write out the words
then leave them at home
bring your favorite pick
and loose it on your way to the stage
don't bother to tune
have the wrong strap so you have to sit in an uncomfortable chair
then say fuck it and just do it anyway EXACTLY what happened to me at Amelia ... but you gotta add that you need to play someone else's guitar that has no fret markers and the side dots are the same color as the binding and there are no lights on the stage except for floor lamps and the music stand. |
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November 2004
Posts: 4413
| Did ya break a string as well? |
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August 2002
Posts: 8307
Location: Tennessee | As a matter of fact, I did. |
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OK how do you do it? (playing out)
