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How Far Do You Go For Rehearsal?


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How far do you go for band rehearsal? How far is too far for you?

 

I drive just about 60 mins. to get to band rehearsal. Usually, rehearsal lasts two hours. So that means I am driving about two hours (round trip) to attend a two hour rehearsal. Which is about my limit.

 

I'm asking because I recently was invited to play in a interesting band, but their rehearsals are at least a 90 min drive for me, which means I would be spending 3 or so hours in my car to attend rehearsal. I'm inclined to turn it down. I don't think the band does enough hi-paying gigs to make up for me taking three hours out of my keyboard day.

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I walk downstairs to my basement for band rehearsal. :laugh:

 

Otherwise, I'd be willing to drive 30 minutes each way to attend a rehearsal.

 

I cannot think of a band doing anything musically and/or financially rewarding enough that would would compel me to drive an hour or more each way for a rehearsal.

 

But, that's coming from an old man who has everything already set up in-house. YMMV. :cool:

PD

 

"The greatest thing you'll ever learn, is just to love and be loved in return."--E. Ahbez "Nature Boy"

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Short answer: 45 minute drive is my max for a rehearsal. (For context: I'm a weekend warrior in a midwest city.)

 

Long answer: OP's questions strike me as permutations of "is it worth staying in band X or taking gig Y?" I'm fond of the three factors laid out by other forumites: (1) good tunes, (2) good hang, and (3) good pay. The higher a project registers on these three factors, the further I'm willing to drive. I'm involved in one project that rates low-to-medium on these scales but practices just 10 minutes from my house, so why not. I'm in another project that rates high on all three factors, and I make the 45 min drive for that one.

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More than the drive, it's far more important to me to evaluate what gets accomplished at practice. At my (low) level of bands, too many will get together and leave with pretty much the same songs to work on ("I'll try to spend more time on that one before the next rehearsal!"). Hell to the no on that ever again. If I joined a new band and even one person showed up without obviously having spent time learning the tunes I'd be out, I spent far too long putting up with that in the past.

 

I prefer long, low-volume practices that knock out a ton of songs at once. Get them learned, gig them right away. We practice once a month at most and sometimes without the drummer if he can't make it (especially if he already knows the songs).

 

I work from home now and don't have to commute, so I'm a bit more amenable to a longer drive than I used to be (and of course there are good drives and bad ones, I do hate traffic....a longish sedate drive while I listen to an audiobook wouldn't be so bad.)

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I agree about the 45-min. limit; in fact, I prefer to keep it to 30 min. or less. I've actually turned down pickup gigs, if they came with the caveat of 1-2 rehearsals before the gig (reasonable, if the money's there), but the commute was 60+ minutes each way (not so good). Generally, even if the long commute seems OK at first, it will start to wear over time.

 

That said, there are mitigating circumstances. If the band is capable of learning 3-6 tunes (or more) at every rehearsal, then the commute is less painful. This requires that everyone not only learn the tunes, but learn them well enough to point out problems with others' parts, if they arise. In this case, the commute can actually work to one's benefit: put the song on the car stereo, set it to repeat, and keep listening to it until it just about drives you crazy -- then you have the song memorized! Unfortunately, in today's reduced-pay environment, there's always at least one band member can't or won't commit to this regimen.

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-BW

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I don't have hard and fast rules on these kinds of things - I find it more useful to evaluate every opportunity in terms of opportunity cost and possible outcomes. This is probably because I have a day job that demands a fair amount of mental attention and rewards that in a lot of ways. So my time has value and a cost, and every musical opportunity has to provide a suitable level of desirable outcomes or it's literally not worth it to me.

 

But those outcomes aren't primarily monetary, and they never will be compared to what the day job provides.

 

So how's the hang with the fellas and gals? Am I going to put myself in a situation where I may grow musically? Is the music interesting to me personally? Will I enjoy it, and learn from it? Are they simply quality people I enjoy hanging out with - cause the older I get, the fewer close friends I have and the social contact is important to my well-being and mental health.

 

I still end up turning down far more gigs than I accept these days, but it also means I'm occasionally rehearsing 45 minutes away from my house.

 

Rehearsals? The players need to be on top of their game and already know how to quickly learn a tune - so "garage time" is all about exploring how we fit together and what we have to say to each other musically. I'm kind of not the guy to spend hours in a garage with a struggling guitar player who is still learning how to play that tune. We all expect we're going to show up to the garage fully able to play the tune, and the precious time spent together is exploring interesting ways to say something cool with it.

 

Just my 0.02

 

Tim

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I've gone about 1.5 hours each way (so round trip of 3 hours) for weekly rehearsals in the past. However, if it was a special event or for, say, several weeks of performances like for a musical production or something, I'm fine driving maybe 5 hours (but that would mean I'd stay in the area). So I top out at 1.5 hours each way if it's weekly. That can be pushed to two hours each way if it's bi-weekly.

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I have one project where we have one or two rehearsals a year â usually when a sub needs to get brought up to snuff.

 

Since we set up with full Backline including in-Ear, our techs need to be there, so people drive between five minutes and three hours to get there.

 

Other stuff gets rehearsed during sound check, if necessary.

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My main band is down the street from me, literally a 2 minute drive. We have a setup there which replicates our live show (no PA, just IEMs) and I simply bring in my NS3 and set it up on my rehearsal stand with pedals, cables, Vent, etc. all there in place. It's so easy and good.

 

I'm playing with two other bands that require a bit more effort. My new Clash tribute band rehearses in the city about 20-25 minutes away and I need to bring not only my NS3, but also stand, cables, pedals, etc. I put together a small rack to make this easier. My former touring band is doing a big reunion gig after Christmas and this band rehearses about 35-40 minutes away out in the country and it's the same deal with needing to bring in the full rig.

 

Both of these gigs are more specialized and not as frequent (plus are a bit more rewarding on a few fronts), so I don't mind a bit of extra effort for them. I do get weary when I happen to have 2-3 rehearsals landing in a given week, so I try to rotate diplomatically.

 

There's nothing interesting enough for me to consider driving more than 45 minutes one way.

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What's a rehearsal?

 

 

PPP - Paid Practice Program. I rehearse at the gigs.

 

I've played in bands that rehearsed, they didn't make any more money than the ones that don't rehearse and the audience doesn't know or care the difference. The venue hires you because people show up and buy stuff, they don't care what you do or do not. Confronted by a high level of indifference, I am happy to fit right in.

It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is.
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I'm in a local project band getting ready for our debut gig, 3 hour rehearsals, 1-2 week. No one is more than 15-20 minutes from rehearsal house.

 

More generally speaking, when we're interviewing for new members, distance is certainly a factor. Lots more reasons for someone to not make a rehearsal when it's a 45 minute drive for them, especially as we're doing it for fun vs. $$$.

Want to make your band better?  Check out "A Guide To Starting (Or Improving!) Your Own Local Band"

 

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I've driven 45 min, 2or 3 times a week for several years. That's door to door so probably 30 mins on the highway and 15 minutes at stop lights. If you are serious about the band and like to be there it's not a burden.

 

I've driven an hour or more for an occasional jam with friends I haven't seen in awhile.

 

I wont mention how far I've driven for a gig.

 

As far as hiring a band member that has to make a long drive, I lean towards bringing people in that live 30 mins away or closer. Longer than that always leads to trouble. They are always late or have other issues about getting to practice. There are exceptions of course. But that just proves the rule.

FunMachine.

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Others have posted some of the many variables that temper the "How Far Do You Go?" decision. For my main band, it's 10 minutes away. Another band, I practice at home to recordings and just show up for the gig -- no rehearsal. For another, I car pool with the pedal steel player for occasional rehearsals maybe 45 minutes away. I really like that band, their originals, their 3-part harmonies, their stage presence, so it scores high on the good music and good hang criteria. I just checked out another project. I carpooled with the bass player to go about an hour or more away. If the project moves along, it will be occasional rehearsals that far away again, but again practicing at home and only getting together to run through material that we all prepared ahead of time. That project potentially has good music and good hang, with unknown gigs and money, so I'll pursue it until it becomes clear how far I'll want to go for rehearsal and how often. If it's only occasionally and the music's good, I'll keep going that far. On the other extreme, an earlier version of my main band never rehearsed. We worked out new material live at the gig. But you gotta have good players with lots of experience and big ears.
These are only my opinions, not supported by any actual knowledge, experience, or expertise.
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I've dealt with this issue at 3 different levels...

 

(1) Local classic rock covers band, only a 15 minute drive to rehearsal space (and I cross state a border!), local gigs, good pay, appreciative audiences. I would probably not drive more than 30 minutes to rehearsal (one way) for such a gig.

 

(2) Regional country-rock band, 45 minute drive in-state, regional gigs (state fairs, festivals, mid-range sporting events, etc.), great pay, very appreciative audiences. I would likely not drive more than about 1.5 hours to rehearsal (one way) for such a gig.

 

(3) Special prog-rock project, 4 hour drive out-of-state (!), very few gigs, very little pay, small audiences. This was a vanity project simply for the rarity of playing such music with such musicians. Doesn't happen often, and for the brief period it was happening, to me it was worth it. This gig went belly-up a few years ago. (Wonder why?). :)

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I'm in a jazz quartet with guys scattered around the Bay Area, about 20 or 30 minutes travel to an in-person session. However, we've been alternating those with from-home sessions on JackTrip, which is now supported by a non-profit (jacktrip.org). We each have decent home studios or practice rooms with mics, internet, etc., The recent introduction of the JackTrip Virtual Studio managed servers and their JackTrip Bridge devices (they jack your audio by Ethernet cable directly into your router) has been a game-changer for us....Uncompressed audio, minimal latency (we each get 5-10 msec roundtrip) with a fast ISP, ability to mix and pan the players across your stereo field....It's like playing together in a studio with headphones on. Also, the server time is free, at least until sometime next year.

 

It doesn't replace in-person sessions, of course, but if you want to work out tunes or do similar nuts and bolts group work, the sound is stellar and in sync, and you have zero travel time. I play often with our sax player as a duo. He's about 30 minutes away, but we can play together on the spur of the moment in a JackTrip Virtual Studio, even if it's just for a few minutes to try out an idea. If there's a JT server in your area, check it out! Much better than the first generation of on-line live audio systems that had annoying latency and sometimes poor sound.

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What's a rehearsal?

 

 

PPP - Paid Practice Program. I rehearse at the gigs.

 

I've played in bands that rehearsed, they didn't make any more money than the ones that don't rehearse and the audience doesn't know or care the difference. The venue hires you because people show up and buy stuff, they don't care what you do or do not. Confronted by a high level of indifference, I am happy to fit right in.

 

Much the same for me. The island rock/Jimmy Bufffett tribute typically rehearses once each spring to learn some new material and tighten up the show. The leader lives a little over an hour away, but it's not an issue since meeting up is infrequent. The other band I'm with did every-other-week rehearsals for most of this past spring; their sets include at least a dozen concert-rock, keyboard-intensive songs. When I lived in Colorado, two country bands I gigged with essentially never rehearsed. We did our homework on new material, then put it together on the job.

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I experience both situations.

 

Due to the nature of the show the country band puts on, we establish a setlist for the whole year (wandering from it occasionally), and once rehearsed, we're good to go for the whole year of touring. No mid-year rehearsals.

 

The local classic rock guys, on the other hand, like to rehearse and learn new songs all year 'round, and add these new songs into our setlist during the course of the year. It sometimes gets to be a chore... but at the end of the day, I appreciate the work put into learning new material, it keeps us fresh and gives our steady audience new material to hear. And continually adds to my personal repertoire of classic rock songs that I can jump in and play with any rock cover band. Good stuff.

 

I like the idea of "our gigs ARE the rehearsal", and sometimes both bands would book inconsequential low-level gigs to serve exactly that purpose. Only thing about that is you can't really "rehearse properly" with interruptions and corrections at a gig. It's a different kind of rehearsal. Like air-brushing the final product to perfection. But generally not a good place to work out a new song from scratch.

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One other nugget I'll throw in here that has become a ritual for my main band now going on about 10 years, other than one year skipped during the pandemic. This allows for a mega rehearsal to start the year.

 

Our drummer has a river house about 1.5 hours away from home and he hosts a "Band River Retreat" every January, usually within the first few weeks of the new year, before gigs pick up for us. We all descend upon his river house with gear from mid-day Friday through Sunday and a list of something like 12-15 songs that we've all been working on in advance. We set up the gear and spend a lot of time working on new material that will seed our coming year with a lot of fresh tunes or new ways to blend songs.

 

We also spend a lot of time eating, drinking, watching irreverent movies plus music documentaries, and simply having fun together.

 

We are already building our River Retreat song list for Jan 2022. Can't wait!

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One other nugget I'll throw in here that has become a ritual for my main band now going on about 10 years, other than one year skipped during the pandemic. This allows for a mega rehearsal to start the year.

 

Our drummer has a river house about 1.5 hours away from home and he hosts a "Band River Retreat" every January, usually within the first few weeks of the new year, before gigs pick up for us. We all descend upon his river house with gear from mid-day Friday through Sunday and a list of something like 12-15 songs that we've all been working on in advance. We set up the gear and spend a lot of time working on new material that will seed our coming year with a lot of fresh tunes or new ways to blend songs.

 

We also spend a lot of time eating, drinking, watching irreverent movies plus music documentaries, and simply having fun together.

 

We are already building our River Retreat song list for Jan 2022. Can't wait!

 

That's a great tradition.

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