"Performing" vs. merely playing

[tucker71]

I'm at a point now where I can move, jump, or "pose" as much as I want and STILL be able to play the parts properly.

 

When I was younger....I suppose I did have to stand still and actually LOOK at what my left hand was doing but, eventually my comfort level and confidence rose to the point where I didn't need to look or think.

 

Best thing I ever did was join a very successful coverband in NYC. 4 or 5 nights per week, 3 long sets each night, different stages, different crowds, different sound men, and an EXTREEEEMELY varied set list really expanded my musical vocabulary, my endurance, and my stage presence. (plus I made a shizload of cash!)

[steverm3]

Heres my take - when you gig, youre supposed to be an entertainer, a performer. First and formost you should sound good. However, people are there to watch as well as hear. If you really feel your songs, and are keeping a groove, it should be almost natural for your head and body to be moving to it - if youre doing it right, its usually infectuous to those listening and watching. Also, if youre having fun and throw a few moves in and/or interact with the crowd, it may enhance your performance thus potentially making it more entertaining and enjoyable for everyone - again, its infectuous. If its forced, it will show. just get comfy and jam out, be real, the crowd will sense confidence and integrity, and if they see that you are enjoying it, it will be more natural for them to as well. I think you prob already know all this.

 

No offense, but in your picture, youre sitting on a stool playing, I consider this an absolute no-no for any performance unless youre playing an unplugged mellow gig like a coffee shop or something.

[BenLoy]

Originally posted by 8PerSecond:

No offense, but in your picture, youre sitting on a stool playing, I consider this an absolute no-no for any performance unless youre playing an unplugged mellow gig like a coffee shop or something.

I think it's a picture of him practicing, dude.

 

It depends on the gig for me.

 

For singer songwriter stuff, it's stand in the background and look serious:

 

http://www.benloy.com/images/tumutly_band.jpg

 

For rawk, you'd better get sweaty and bring the loud:

 

http://www.benloy.com/images/GrundyDonHills.jpg

[moot]

That is a beautiful Stingray Ben.

 

Something that wasn't mentioned in this thread was the "lead singer" factor. When you bring in the whole mic stand thing the play/perform dynamic changes drastically.

[Prague]

Don't overdo the showmanship, though. It's hilarious (for me) to watch local acts thinking they are rock stars. Even more funny is watching their "showmanship". We laugh at you.

 

If possible, try and get some constructive criticism about your stage appearance. If you're up there playing easy songs, wearing typical Saturday clothes, and acting like a star, I'll roar my head off at you. I won't be alone, either.

 

Dancing around should be reserved for the talented. Looking like you enjoy what you do is for everyone.

[ClarkW]

Verdine White of Earth, Wind, and Fire pretty much never stops dancing for the whole show.

 

I've never seen Tower of Power live, but from a video I saw it seems that Rocco Prestia rarely moves.

 

Similar styles, both of them enormously talented individuals, and both of them very successful at making a name for themselves in a large ensemble.

 

I think it's a choice. If the bandleader doesn't say otherwise, you can move around or you can not move around. My first gig with Hourglass, I barely moved because I was concentrating on playing the right notes. The drummer's wife afterward told us all, "You were boring to watch, all of you. Take it up a notch." So we did. But I've never been told to "take it up a notch" while accompanying the congregation in solemn worship hymns. Just depends on your situation.

 

But to sacrifice technique for showmanship? I say nay; let the showmanship count as technique and practice it until it is perfect as well.

[J.A.]

Originally posted by Snowdog79:

Originally posted by bikertrash:

Originally posted by Snowdog79:

Should one ever sacrifice technique for appearance? Discuss.

Ahhh.....that would be no. Never.

--Reminds me of when Peter Gabriel got kicked out of Genesis. . .he would insist on wearing these elaborate costumes that made it difficult to get the mic near enough to his mouth.

 

What about when Billy Sheehan shifts his bass so the strap's only on his right shoulder, so he can flail around more?

 

What about when Victor Wooten flips his bass around his back?

 

Just playing devil's advocate here....

You forget- Victor Wooten could beat a garbage can with a dead cat and it would still be the funkiest shit you ever heard.

[Snowdog79]

8PerSecond, I agree with you as well--I don't play shows sitting down. That picture was taken at a rehearsal in my garage, and I have it on here because shortly thereafter that beautiful Modulus Quantum 6 was stolen

 

Justinruins, thank you for that hauntingly beautiful imagery. And for the record, I tend to agree.

[Dave Martin]

Originally posted by C. Alexander Claber:

Reggie Wooten: Gets crazy applause etc when doing his slap/tap stuff on the guitar, live with Victor's band. The first time you hear it on the recording you go, "interesting, but..." The second time and thereafter you go "please, someone press the mute button..."

I've played gigs with Reggie - it gets to be big fun when you go ahead and tap along with him... The result might not always be 'music', but it can definitely be 'rhythm'.

[Rick Hoffman]

In Magus Beast, I stand next to the drummer and we just go off together. There's so much going on, I don't have time to think about my performance. I just let it happen, while trying not to make any funny faces or dances. I can't wait to see the pictures from our last gig.

 

There's a few times in the set where I solo, so I'll move up a little bit nearer the front of the stage while the guitar players make room. That's when I know all eyes are on me and I perform by trying to play as brilliantly as possible.

 

When I'm jamming with this singer/songwriter I know, as Big Ben says, I go the serious route. As if I'm now a session player, because those cats always want you to change it up and play different things.

 

In the cover band I used to be in, I had to sing lead vocals. I just concentrated on the groove and tried not to mess up. My face would contort like hell, and I just stood in one place while tappin my foot and singing up into the mic. When there were no vocals I would move around, instinctively it was always towards the drummer first...

 

I don't try to jump around or connect with the audience or any of that crap. I just play, the sonic wave of bass thumping through your chest is how I communicate with the audience. \m/

[Tom Capasso]

Our classic rock organization includes some guys who worship at the altar of Derek Trucks (stand still, don't look up at the crowd). Myself and another guitarist are usually on the same side of the stage. We move a bit - not too many stupid rock moves, but definitly moving with the music - sometimes independent, some times swaying in unison.

 

We started playing Counting Crows' "Murder Of One", and during the refrain we (two guitars and myself) jump straight up down, moving and twirling. It's tremendously fun, and probably looks impossibly stupid. We haven't done this tune live yet, but I'm guessing we'll jump a little bit. Prague - I hope you can show up because you'll choke on your beer seeing us (one of us is 40, the other two are 50).

 

One of the facts about seeing our band involves our percussionist (remember the percussionist? This is a thread about the percussionist....). While he isn't flashy or doing anything to draw attention to himself, he makes more different movements and different sounds than anyone else. People definitely spend some time watching him. The sad part is that we rarely have the proper stage real estate to show him off.

 

Tom

[davio]

Originally posted by GTRBass:

Very few people are entertained by sheer technical prowess other than musicians.

I tend to disagree. Nonmusicians won't necessarily know what's going on but they will still (more than likely) enjoy it.

 

For example, the other day I was giving my girlfriend's borderline autistic 15-year old younger brother a ride home and I was playing a Tower of Power CD. "Credit" came on and half way through the song he said "Wow, that bass player is really good!" and he was singing "Little Knowledge" for the rest of the day. I don't think he had ever heard ToP before.

 

Also, one of my best friends who still listens to little but his old Papa Roach and Limp Bizkit CDs was blown away a few years ago when I brought a live Jaco CD along for a ride one day. He thought it was amazing and wanted to know why I didn't play like that.

 

Both of them have about as much musical talent as a lawnmower.

[davio]

Originally posted by Tom Capasso:

While [our percussionist] isn't flashy or doing anything to draw attention to himself, he makes more different movements and different sounds than anyone else. People definitely spend some time watching him.

My band is very similar. Our drummer (my room mate, who is a music education major and one of the best performers at our college) is extremely animated and I often find myself wanting to sit and watch him play rather than play along and look out at the audience.

[bspangleyahoo.com]

This is actually a great topic!

To me "performing" means:

1) showing that you're having a good time even if you're playing "elevator music" at whisper quiet levels

2) doing everything you can to make a wedding reception a great party/celebration

3) keeping the crowd in the bar interested enough to continue to buy beer and have fun

4) playing your best even if you don't feel well or the "crowd" is sparse or seems aloof.

 

If you gig (play out to you younger guys), you owe it to the rest of the working musicians to perform to the best of your abilities. When venues have trouble with musicians, often times they just quit hiring musicians.