Stupid Mistakes while playing

[Ross Brown]

How many mistakes do you make in a typical practice/gig? I had a good rehearsal last Friday but I was thinking to myself about the mistakes that I make. I am talking about the songs that I know well, not new songs. And I am talking about stupid mistakes, not things that I thought would be good and were not. I am talking about missing the root/chord/timing change kinda mistakes.

 

I believe this is mostly about concentration, but I wondered what others experience is? I would say that I make 3 or 4 of these type of stupid mistakes. I am shooting for zero by gig time. Is that realistic.

[Nicklab]

Well, with the last gig I played I can attribute my mistakes to the stage lighting or the lack thereof. I could barely see a thing onstage, and I couldn't see the dots on the side of the neck at all! So I wound up a half step off on a few notes. It was really annoying, but a solid argument for those LED neckmarkers.

[alexclaber]

I agree that it's mostly a concentration issue. Aim for zero mistakes but remember that it's very rare for anyone other than yourself to notice. If mistakes do happen, leave them behind and get on with playing the next note with conviction.

 

Alex

[Ross Brown]

Originally posted by C. Alexander Claber:

I agree that it's mostly a concentration issue. Aim for zero mistakes but remember that it's very rare for anyone other than yourself to notice. If mistakes do happen, leave them behind and get on with playing the next note with conviction.

 

Alex

Yea. I am trying to learn not to make a funny face when it happens. The others in the band don't seem to notice, except the lead guitarist, sometimes, then he thinks it was him...

[fingertalkin]

My last gig was a train wreck. I was standing behind the PA and the sounds were echoing, the singer was forgetting lyrics and out of key, the drummer was off. It was just a bad show period. But, we got invited back.

 

For me, when I screw up, it is boredom. I am not good enough to spice stuff up so playing a song that to me is boring, I can't focus and I miss the note. Whats weird though is that even if I don't know a song that well, if I am really feeling the song, it seems as though I can do no wrong.

[wraub]

I find I make 3 kinds of "mistakes", in general, while playing.

1. Loss of focus. This is all about concentration. It's good to pay attention, especially as a big part of playing live is about the unique, one-time musical moments anyway.

 

B. Brain fart. Sometimes you play the G, even when you know it's supposed to be an A. It's not you, it's your brain misfiring. Reassuring, no?

 

3. Other. This is usually a PA or mix problem causing me or others to lose the feel or place in the song.

 

Oddly enough, practice and rehearsal seem to go a long way (for me) towards alleviating all 3 issues.

Really, really knowing the material, notes and feel, allows me some freedom from the above mistakes and opens avenues for improvisation.

 

That said, having all that in my pocket means that when they happen, my mistakes are usually doozies, simply from overreaching.

 

Peace,

 

wraub

[Tom Capasso]

There are rare times where I seem to loose track of where we are in the song, or I don't remember the song accurately. This is more likely to happen in rehearsal with new music.

 

I loose concentration also. I stop paying attention to the details of playing and go on auto-pilot. Some music is simple and repetitive enough that you can turn off your mind, relax and float downstream. The mistakes appear with the other music!

 

I'm not sure that I see the difference between wraub's #1 and #2. I'll add that sometimes my ear/brain/hand connections miss when I'm soloing. This type of mistake is painful because people might notice it. I don't solo much (never in my rock band), so it's not a big issue.

 

Tom

[wraub]

Tom, to me, the difference in those 2 examples is that in the first, it's a lack of focus thing. I just space it, usually in a simple section, as you suggested. Rehearsal seems to help with this for me, as enhanced song awareness opens up fill possibilities to plan for.

 

The second example is when I am digging and grooving, playing fine, and when I go to hit a note, I play a different note. I am in the moment, I know my place, it's just the wrong note gets in the way. Brain fart. Rehearse away, they still can happen sometimes.

 

Is this just me?

 

 

Peace,

 

wraub

[picker]

I make mistakes playing for three reasons;

 

1. Unfamiliarity with the material;

I get one new song(atleast) thrown at me every week, some of which are so simple you don't have to know them, some so complicated you can't play them even if you do. The latter tend to make life interesting.

 

2. Unfamiliarity with the instrument I am playing;

I still mistake the B string on a five for an E string sometimes.

 

3. Distraction;

the 5 topless girls riding by on the back of their biker boyfriend's motorcycles, the guy getting his ear bitten off on the dance floor in front of me, the explosion of an amp/speaker/power supply onstage, breaking a string, stumbling over my own feet, all of these have caused me to miss a few notes here and there...

[Ross Brown]

You like motorcycles that much???

[Seamy ALB]

I am really lucky that when I learn a song it sticks with me. I break songs into sections learn those and then put them together, I sometimes make a chart (that only I'd understand) to learn a tune. I normally play new material really well but if its something like Brown Eyed Girl for the 40 billionth time the brain can sometimes switch of.

 

To overcome this I try to apply different arppeggios, play in different positions, divde the beat different. One song I do this alot in is Mr Jones by the counting crows, much to consternation of my guitar player.

 

As for playing in the dark what I use to do was practice with my eyes closed the different modes of a given scale up and down the neck.

[fingertalkin]

The second example is when I am digging and grooving, playing fine, and when I go to hit a note, I play a different note. I am in the moment, I know my place, it's just the wrong note gets in the way. Brain fart. Rehearse away, they still can happen sometimes.

 

Is this just me?

 

 

No. That is what I do. My mind and fingers aren't communicating.

 

Sorry if I didn't do the quote thing right. I am still learning.

Shane

[Big Red 67]

Sometimes I know what to play and my fingers decide to play a "Jazz note" anyway? They can have a mind of their own sometimes.

[chubby]

The crazies mistake I ever made was to try and surf on an old upright pinao. For some reason I presume the wheels would barly roll it shot off the stage like it was shot out of a cannon I was lucky we were just practing to see how it would work. Lucky for me we decided to drop that trick.

[TimR]

Its happing more and more to me lately especially with tunes that I am over familiar with. I start to think about other things than playing.

 

For instance, last night I was wondering, during a song, what I was going to do for lighting at this weekends gig. The lights are at my brothers house and he is away on holiday. All of a sudden the bridge is looming and I miss it completely. The other week I suddenly remembered I had to get some milk on the way home, and I was wondering where the nearest 24 hour shop was. Another missed verse.

 

But I think this is also because I don't have a regime at the beginning of the practise that allows me to clear my head. This is something I have been aware of for a while but seem unable to do.

 

It doesn't happen at gigs, because I arrive, set up and then go and sit down and relax before playing. Practising is different, time is limited, were paying for studio time, everyone wants to get a certain amount done, and so practises tend to be more pressured than the gigs, by gig time all the hard work has been done.

 

If you don't make mistakes, the only reason for you to be there is to provide a solid bass line that the rest of the band can make mistakes to.

[PhilMan99]

Originally posted by TimR:

Its happing more and more to me lately especially with tunes that I am over familiar with. I start to think about other things than playing.

...cut...

Bingo! When sitting at a desk or taking a walk, it is fine to let your mind "wander". When playing, though, you need to remain "focused" at some level.

 

The 3rd verse of Free Bird is not the best time to be thinking about whether this is a good time to upgrade your home PC...

[Gruuve]

I'm probably in a more unique situation than others...church worship band, and we play 5-6 different songs every week. Now, we repeat songs over time, but we may only carry one (occasionally two, sometimes none) over from the previous week. And although I've been playing every weekend for about 2 months (whew), it's sometimes drums and sometimes bass.

 

Some songs just click for me. Those are usually the up-tempo songs that I can plug a good groove into. The slower, more mellow songs are the ones I have difficulty following correctly...it's definitely a focus thing.

 

Funny thing though that someone mentioned above...when you make a mistake, most of the time the other band members are standing there wondering if they hit a wrong note (and that's only if they even hear the mistake to begin with). Don't sweat the small mistakes, there are no perfect people on the planet.

 

Recording is a different story though...if I make a mistake while tracking a part and don't realize it until later, listening to it will drive me bonkers for all eternity until I go back and fix the mistake.

 

Dave

[wwittman]

I make one HUGE mistake in just about every show.

 

When it gets to be such rote that all you're doing is regurgitating your "part" without taking any chances, I think it's time to quit.

[picker]

Originally posted by Ross Brown:

You like motorcycles that much???

But these were really tricked out hogs, man...and the bikes were nice too...

[moot]

Originally posted by Big Red 67:

Sometimes I know what to play and my fingers decide to play a "Jazz note" anyway? They can have a mind of their own sometimes.

Sooo true!!

 

At my last recording session I was laying to a song that ended on a tight stop in G. What did my fingers play? A. Yep - Jazz.

 

At live shows if I goof it is usually because of nerves.

At showcases we usually end with a Rush tune. People love it and it has become our trademark I guess. Last gig I was so nervous I totally spaced the last 7 notes of the tune Limelight.

So much for the big ending yes?

 

Saturday we are finishing with Spirit of Radio. I can't wait to screw that up.

[LLroomtempJ]

My brain farts smell like roses.

[Brocko777]

Playing in a musical right now, Opening night the Director decides that the pit musicians need blacklight bulbs because he can see the light from the sound booth. GREAT.. except all the lightly made pencil mark notes and cues that were written in (gotta erase everything clean to return the music)totally disappear under the black light. ggggrrrrr!

 

Brocko

[PhilMan99]

FYI, for "getting into the zone", arguably the opposite of "spacing out", I found this interesting: http://www.austega.com/education/articles/flow.htm

[ZZ Thorn]

I guess I'm unusual in that I've never made a misteak, so I really can't add much to the thread.

 

Were I ever to join the human race...I'd just get back on the horse and keep playing as well as I could. Maybe I'd sacrifice a goat or three to various gods to prevent such a thing from happening again.

 

Maybe I'd consider practicing more or preparing better, but again, I'm unusual in that every note I've ever played has been perfect and has reduced every and all women within earshot to quivering jelly.

[Ross Brown]

I was just kidding, I never make a "misteak" either.

 

I do find it hard to play in front of quivering jelly, especially if it is on a motorcycle.

[jlrush]

I have the occasional brain fart and hit G instead of A, like wraub, but most of the time my fingers just get fumbly.

I play the fiver mostly, but after a year I still have those times when I can't find the note, and I just keep moving, hoping no one noticed.

 

Originally posted by G7TZ:

 

My brain farts smell like roses.

 

You're one of the lucky ones Jason.

[Rocky McDougall]

I don't have any really serious malfunctions...except when I really concetrate hard, I stop breathing. That causes me to go to sleep while playing. I'm not sure what happens after that??

Rocky zzzzzzzzzzzz

[Davo-London]

The TimR quote:

 

"If you don't make mistakes, the only reason for you to be there is to provide a solid bass line that the rest of the band can make mistakes to."

 

Is as beautiful as it is ironic.

 

I must stop the facial winces. I do try and smile when annoyone makes a howler, so as to lighten the mood. This helps the audience realise that humans are involved in the process.

 

I am occasionally quick enough to recover from a wrong note to make it sound like a passing note.

 

Davo

[Big Daddy from Motown]

I made the worst mistake of all on Saturday night. I didn't get to the gig untill 5 mins. before start time. In in 38 years of playing out I've only been late 2 or three times.

[Ross Brown]

Originally posted by Big Daddy from Motown:

I made the wosst mistake of all on Saturday night. I didn't get to the gig untill 5 mins. before start time.

Wow. I would have been irritable. I can't stand when I am running late to anything. How did you play?