I'd love to have (instrumentalist name) play along on my song. What's the right/wrong way of asking them?

(Fiddler Amy McNally was kind enough to let me re-post this entry she made in her Livejournal)

In an ideal world, performers who would like accompaniment on a specific song ask me ahead of time. This is good for everybody. Not only do I have a chance to say no (and explain why privately, if applicable), but should I say yes, I have advance warning that someone would like me to be in the same circle/concert as them, I get to hear the song first and digest it before going into the circle, we can rehearse it and I can figure out what's best for the song and what the singer has in mind for me to do, and then we can go amaze everybody.

However, it often happens that someone who's about to sing in a filk circle mentions that they'd love to hear their song with my accompaniment, and begin to play or sing.

As an accompanist, that puts me in a difficult position.  There are a lot of reasons I might not want to play along with a song. Let's start with the most basic.

-Can I hear you? There's a reason I'm usually sitting on the floor closer to the middle of the circle, but sometimes I wind up sitting on the floor in the back. I like to be able to hear the song I'm playing along with, and if possible, look at your fingers for advance warning of chord changes. But that also means if you can't sing above a certain decibel level, I don't want to add an accompaniment line. Not only do I not want to risk drowning you out, I'm playing into my own left ear. If I can't hear you when I'm playing, I can't play along with you.

-Can I physically play that? Here's a hint: If your song has written, across the top of it, the words "CAPO ONE," I probably can't. Good keys are easy keys: A, C, D, G, and their respective minors? All awesome. B flat major? Not my favorite, but I can probably manage. C# minor? Less awesome. D flat is right out. On the other hand, those are discernible keys. If you don't have any other accompanying instrument and you sing in the key of H flat minor diminished et cetera, I can't play along.  If you don't have an accompanying instrument, it's a great idea to get a note from somebody before you begin to sing. Also, there are tempo and meter considerations. If it's really fast and complicated, I probably don't want to mess it up. If, on the other hand, the song is of a moderate and reliable tempo, is composed mostly of one-four-five chord progressions for which you use standard chords, all of the verses are all of the same length and emphasis and chord
 structure, it doesn't include a bunch of dramatic stops, you always put the same number of beats between verses, and the choruses always come at regular intervals, and the bridge doesn't change keys? There's a much higher chance of me being physically able to play along. I know that sounds really picky. I know y'all have seen me playing along with Barry Childs-Helton. But if you want me to play along with no advance warning, the song should be easy and predictable, and you gotta know it COLD. Speaking of which...

-Can you keep going if I play? If I play along with you, the song will change. I will be introducing random elements into your song. I may get lost. I may start playing in the wrong key. I may play over the bars that you usually use to get your bearings. I may play louder than your guitar and mess you up. I may suddenly stop playing and quietly re-tune a string. I might surprise the heck out of you by knowing the particular version of the song you play and shock you into forgetting the words. I have done all of these things. I will do them all again. Here's a good test: Play your song against a radio station that plays melodic music. The radio needs to be playing loudly enough that the lyrics they're singing are comprehensible when you're not playing.

I have to establish those three big questions. Only AFTER I know the answers can I begin to go into questions like:
-Do I want to play? This is an important question. You and your song are probably awesome!  But maybe I don't want to play along. Maybe I need to rest my fingers. Maybe I really want to *listen* to your song, or sing along, or use something as a drum.

Maybe I'm trying not to be a filk hog. People are less likely to view accompanists as filk hogs, it's true.  There's a different set of rules. But, if I've played along with the last five songs, it could be time for me to take a break and let other people accompany. Or, perhaps I haven't played along with a lot of things lately, but I'm gearing up to use my energy and time in the circle to do a piece of my own. I don't want to take more than my fair share of the filk-circle pie.

Maybe I don't think the song is right for the fiddle.  Some songs just aren't. As an accompanist, I want to add just the right mix of spices and nuances to your song.  Maybe a song needs rosemary and the violin would be like cinnamon.  There's nothing wrong with that. If everything had fiddle (or cinnamon), the world would be a boring place.

Maybe I'm not in tune with you, and playing along would sound bad if I don't get a chance to pull you and me out in the hallway with the same tuner. Speaking of which: "Hey, [person from whom I would like accompaniment], are we in tune together?" Is NEVER an offensive question. EVER. I find being out of tune with somebody physically painful. I can usually compensate to some degree, because I have no frets, but some instruments (like a tin whistle, or a keyboard) just can't be tuned a little this way or that way to accomodate. I can ignore it, too, if I need to. But ignoring something doesn't make it go away, and other people will hear it.

It could even be that I don't like the song. Everybody has things they like and dislike. Me, I like asparagus more than I like brussels sprouts. I like the Rolling Stones a lot more than I like Neil Diamond. We are who we are. If you ask me to play along with a song, and that song is really awesome and easy and you know it cold, but it's about a blue-haired girl who works in a bookstore and plays the violin and she dies horribly and nobody remembers her, I'm probably less interested in accompanying you. It's nothing personal, it just might not be my cup of tea.

-How obvious will it be if I screw up? Just like any other performer, I don't want to sound crummy. Accompanying people adds an additional risk: If I sound crummy, you'll sound crummy, too.  And I WANT to make you sound as wonderful as possible. So, once I've identified that yes, I can hear you, and yes, I can physically play along, and yes, you can keep going if I'm playing, and yes, I like the song, and we're in tune, and it needs fiddle, and I want to play along, even then I might not play along if it'd be really obvious every time I screwed up. When I accompany you, I am taking on the responsibility of making you look good, and I want to do it right.

The easiest way to make screwups less obvious is to open the song up to everyone, not just a particular accompanist. You don't have to make a big speech imploring people to play, you can just say, "Hey, everybody, this one's in D!" and go. Announcing the key is a great way to open up a song to the masses, because it also gives specific and helpful information, but doesn't take a long time to say. If other people are playing along, I can hear the chord progression a whole lot better, I can watch the guitarist closest to me for chord changes, I can weave the fiddle part in and out of other folks playing lead, it's great all around.

Sometimes, you don't want to open a song up that widely for mass consumption. That's okay. It's your song.
In that case, please strum firmly and often. If a song has a slow tempo and is only accompanied by a few, well-chosen chords that are only played intermittently to give the song flavor, it's much, muuuuuccchhh easier to get lost and play the wrong thing and sound really bad for a really long time. Nobody wants that.

Also, it really helps to know exactly where I might be sticking out like a sore thumb. If you need to vamp to give yourself time (to remember the words, to give people time to laugh, to draw out a long joke or emphasized line, to get somebody to turn the page for you, whatever), vamp using just one chord so I know the song isn't actually going anywhere. Try to always give the same amount of leeway beats/measures/strums between verses and choruses and choruses and verses. Give an extra few chords if the song modulates up a step, and maybe even say something, like, "And here we go from G to A!"  It seems cheesy, but it can really help somebody who's playing along.

And that's just having an accompanist for the chorus and verses.  THEN, there's instrumentals.  Instrumentals are a big, wide-open opportunity for both of us to look bad, or awesome. Well, no pressure or anything, right?
If there's an instrumental:
---please decide, and then be firm on, whether the instrumental is a verse or a chorus. If for some reason, the instrumental is a verse AND a chorus, and you really need to play them that way, try and signal that, maybe by singing or humming the chorus, or strumming more loudly when you get to the chorus. I may keep playing and you might be tempted to keep playing along, or just strum into the next song segment. Don't. I probably have no idea where I am and I'm just playing until you start singing again.

---there's a chance you'll have learned or written the song to have an instrumental with a different chord structure than the verse OR the chorus. For instance, in Dave and Tracy's "Hey Conductor," there's an instrumental which is NOT "Hey Conductor"'s melody, but is, in fact, the tune of "The Wabash Cannonball." This happens occasionally, but don't expect your accompanist to know that. I'll get confused if you stop singing and then start using a different chord progression/timing/emphasis. If that occurs in your song, please consider not doing an instrumental at all, or changing it so that it occurs in the same place, but has the same length and structure as a verse.

---please don't put the instrumental after the first verse. Instrumentals tend to occur two-thirds of the way through the song, and that's good, because then somebody playing along has a chance to figure out the chord structure.

---you MUST be prepared to just chord through it and smile without me doing anything, because there's a chance I will just give you a panicked look and play like a tiny mouse.

---look at me. Am I playing loudly, with big, confident bowstrokes? Am I making eye contact with you and smiling and nodding? Are my feet moving in time to the music? If my eyes are closed and my bow is only moving a little and my brow is furrowed, I probably won't be able to do much for you besides get lost and blush a lot and look apologetic.

---don't expect me to play what that one guy played on that one album during that one instrumental that was really cool. I'm not that guy, I might not even be playing the same instrument, I might not be that cool, and it's really likely that I've never heard the song before, let alone the album, or that if I have, I've forgotten it.

On the other hand, maybe YOU've worked up something really cool to do during the instrumental, and you don't actually want me to play much. In which case, make eye contact with me and shake your head no as you go into the instrumental, and play loud and clear. I might not pick up on it, and I might play over you, and I'm really sorry.  That's one of the risks you take.  You're allowed to say things with words, too. There are a lot of things you can't communicate with meaningful glances and nods. "I just learned how to fingerpick the instrumental on Folsom Prison Blues! Hey, Amy, can you pick it up if I lose it?" and I can go, "Yes! I know every inch of that solo because I love that song!" or "Gee, I've never heard that before."

In general, please know that I'm glad you're playing!  I'm glad you're singing!  I want you to play. I want to hear it. Maybe I can't play along this time. Maybe I can. It's not the end of the world either way. It's music, it's the beat of blood in our hearts, it's the songs our souls sing, and it can't be a bad thing.

How can I become the sort of performer that musicians want to accompany?

"I want to be the sort of performer that others can and want to play along with. What skills do I need to have/polish that will make it easier for other musicians to accompany me? Are countless hours fumbling through Irish sessions and filk jams/preserves the only way to get there?"

Margaret Middleton:

"Probably the main thing that would help other musicians play along with you is if you know what key you’re playing in. For a guitarist using a capo, this requires a bit of concentration, but it is worth it.

The next thing would be to be able to play in consistent time, including the pauses between verses. I can nudge someone to stay in the key they began in, if they are singing a-capella, but inconsistent timekeeping will provoke me to fling up my hands in despair very quickly."

Gary McGath:

"Assuming you have adequate basic musical skills and can stay on key, the main thing is to be able to play/sing and listen at the same time. This takes work, but not a professional commitment.

Too many people, when they’re performing with a group, try not to listen to others performing different parts because it throws them off. It’s necessary to develop a kind of stereo musical thinking, where you know at the same time what you’re doing, what the other person is doing, and how they fit together. Practicing against a recording is one way to work on this until you feel confident enough to do it with your group."

blind lemming chiffon:

"Ditto on (1) rhythm and (2) key. It’s also good to have knowledge of a few of the common chord progressions. The only thing I’d add is developing an understanding of when to “hang back” which where I come from means playing soft chords or another rhythm part while someone else sings or does an instrumental solo. It’s important not to drown out or overshadow and to get a sense of who the spotlight is on - and if you’re going to play on stage with someone, if time allows do at least a little bit of rehearsing and work out what the parts are and who gets a solo when."

Cat Faber:

"Both Margaret and Gary have good points. I would add another, that’s good for basic performance skills but particularly important for playing with people

Learn to be able to make a mistake and get back on the piece as it’s flowing. People playing with you will appreciate not having to stop for you, and you can learn to use what they’re playing as a way to help you play through mistakes without losing your timing.

Playing along with recorded music might be a way to practice this on your own."

Mich:

"I like the contributions so far! I’m not sure of the context of the question, but I can offer another point of view by describing what, as an piano accompanist, I value in a soloist who wants me to accompany them!

For me, a crucial skill that a performer should have to make me want to accompany them (rather than politely decline) is bizarrely not a musical one but the ability to organise themselves and to know what they need from the accompanist!

A really helpful performer will:

* contact me a goodly period of time before the performance (YMMV, but generally the harder it’s likely to be, the more time I’d like to have as I’m not a confident sight-reader) and ask if I can do it. Asking (rather than assuming) is important, especially in filk where we’re all doing it for love.

* give me sheet music, or chords+lyrics+recording. If you just give me a recording without chords and lyrics I will have to work them out from scratch so I’ll need more chocolate, I mean time!

Unless there’s a really good reason why it’s easier for me to get hold of it, please don’t ask me to try to find the sheet music/recording on your behalf; it’s not fair! I may be accompanying a number of people.

Also, tell me if there are any radical differences between the version you plan to sing and the version you’ve given me.

* let me know when the set is!

* if you’re not used to having a live accompanist (and, in an ideal world, even if you are!) please do arrange a time with me to practise, especially as the sheet music version of your piece may not be the same as the recording that you’ve been practising with…which leads me to…

* please practise your piece! The most soul-destroying thing for me is to take ages learning an accompaniment so I can do the best I can for you and then find on the day that you haven’t practised your part.

I hope none of this sounds harsh; I wouldn’t accompany people if I didn’t enjoy supporting them so they can make great music!

Mich x"



Comments? Suggestions? Please post below:

Any advice for instrumental accompanists?

One of the parts of filking I've always enjoyed is playing music with other people. Before I joined Urban Tapestry, my sole instrument in the filk circle was the flute. I remember being incredibly nervous about it at first, not knowing (1) whether I was good enough to play along with other people and (2) if they wanted me to.

I've learned a lot about instrumental accompaniment over the years, and I'm still learning. Some things I've learned:

Don't assume it's ok to play along, even if it's just a casual filk circle. Some people prefer performing solo. Some may be very nervous, and your accompaniment could throw them off. I usually play it by ear. If it's someone I've never accompanied before, then I'll listen and watch first. If I think I can add an appropriate accompaniment and the performer seems confident, then I'll start noodling very quietly and watch the performer for a signal...a nod, for example, meaning that it's ok. I usually don't try accompanying people I don't know unless they seem to encourage other people in the circle to sing or play along.

Remember that you're backing up the main performer, not taking over. If you're playing while they're singing, make sure you're playing quietly enough that you don't drown out their words. Match the accompaniment to the performer and music -- if their style is simple, for example, ease off those impressive "twiddles" you've been dying to show off. The focus should be on the main performer, NOT you.

If there are other accompanists, give them room. If there's another flute or other melody instrument playing, I may opt not to play, especially if the person is someone known to accompany the performer on a regular basis. If it's more of a jam session with room for other accompanists, I listen to them and try to play around them. If they play high, I try playing low. If they play busy melodies, I stick to longer notes that complement rather than compete with theirs.

Remember that if someone is doing a piece a capella, they may actually prefer NO musical accompaniment. Some songs are traditionally sung a capella, and the feel of the music may change completely if you start strumming along on guitar. In my experience as a listener (others feel free to chime in!), I've noticed that most a capella singers don't seem to mind. Some, however, do. My tip: If you see someone singing a capella and you're aware that the individual IS capable of accompanying himself or herself, then it's likely the person is singing a capella on purpose. If you notice them shake their heads slightly when you start playing, STOP playing.

If unsure, don't play. If you're not sure if the performer minds or not, DON'T play. Ditto if you're not sure if your accompaniment is working with the piece.

Conversely, if you're a performer who doesn't mind people playing or singing along with you, do say so.

Practice: improve your craft

Pick a recording of some musician you like and try playing along. Record yourself playing against the music, and then listen to see how well you're doing.

Advice from other musicians:

Heather Rose Jones:

"It depends. When I'm accompanying on the harp, I have three basic modes: a "walking bass" type line (especially good with blues-type tunes); rhythmic chording (works only on songs with fairly "folk style" chords -- no accidentals); or a melody/descant line. (I'm not quite up to doing more than one mode at a time when I'm improvising.) On the flute, I tend to vary it a lot more within a piece: start out with some fairly slow-moving bass to get settled into the key and chord progression (and to have a chance for the performer to warn me off, if they want, without it being a big deal); move on into some melody and parallel harmonies; and then work up a little descant if the tune calls for it. If there are other accompanists, I'll spend more time going back to the moving bass to leave more "room" for others to play in, and I generally avoid doing more than maybe half a verse on melody, since there isn't much musical point to it, usually. Once in a blue moon, if the piece is right and the performer gives me the nod, I've had a chance to do a bit of serious soloing. Heaven. But as far as I'm concerned, that's purely the performer's call. I'm a lot more comfortable doing fancy stuff on the flute than on the harp -- it's my first instrument, and I don't have to think much while I'm playing it."

Jeff Bohnhoff:

"I tend to jump in very infrequently. I will do it if the performer is someone I know, and I am absolutely certain that they won't mind, or if they have asked me to play along in advance. Even then, I'll only play something if I feel that it can add something and not detract from the song or performer. I almost never play along with someone I don't know. If you do play along, it's *not* OK if what you are playing is taking attention away from the performer and/or the song."

Joe Bethancourt:

"I try to do the same sort of accompaniment that I would do for myself: to embellish and add to the lyric line and vocals. I try to keep away from what the performer of the song is doing on their instrument, and re-enforce their instrumental line.

Don't try to accompany folks who are "star-struck" over themselves. (I name no names ..... ) If it is obviously beyond your capacity, don't try. Learn to hear the chordal changes. Learn basic chordal patterns. Learn to find keys by ear. Let their instrument have priority of sound. Don't overpower their voice. Keep it simple.

(can you tell I do this professionally?)

Common chordal patterns:

I vi IV V (C Am F G)
vi V (Am G common in Irish music)
I iii IV V (C Em F G)

and so forth..... each style has a distictive chordal pattern, and many writers use a preferential pattern very commonly, for example Leslie Fish."

Comments? Suggestions? Please post below.

Is it ok to perform a spoken word piece in open filk? Any performance tips?

Respondents unanimously agreed that spoken word pieces are fine in an open filk circle. From Phil Parker: "With regard to spoken word pieces, I have never seen a spoken word piece that was well written, well chosen for the moment, and well recited or told fail to get a good reaction from a filk circle."

Advice included the following:

- Most seemed to agree that YOU SHOULD KEEP YOUR SPOKEN WORD PIECE SHORT. From Gary Ehrlich: "I have no problem with spoken-word performances. We have some excellent storytellers in the community: Mark Bernstein, Harold Feld, Ian Hanley are the ones who come immediately to mind. As folks have said, the timing is key, especially in a typical circle; I'd say keep it to around 5 minutes (similar for songs). Longer is fine for concerts or smaller circles where folks might be willing to listen to a longer piece.

I still recall with horror one story told in a circle that went so long I was able to go to the bathroom, hit the con suite, check out the alternate room, come back, pack my stuff up, and **move** to the alternate room...and the story was still going when I left with my last load of gear..."

From Harold: "Given that people come to circles to perform as well as to listen, it is polite to make sure your own material does not run overlong. Time yourself when practicing. Don't rush the performance, but you personally should know whether you will be taking 5 minutes, 10 minutes or possibly more and judge whether the audience is really in the mood for such a long piece."

- Practice. A LOT. From Justin Eiler: "Like musical performance, spoken word performance is just that--a performance. Therefore, it requires practice. Memorizing your performance is a necessity, but practice also helps with tempo and timing, delivery, and style."

- There were mixed opinions about whether memorization was necessary or not. Most seemed to feel that memorizing isn't necessary as long as you give an entertaining performance (i.e. don't just read in a monotone with your face glued to your piece of paper). "I disagree slightly re memorization being a necessity, just as you don't have to completely memorize every song you perform," says Joe Keshlam. "Doing so is definitely advantageous, because it frees you from having to spend attention on keeping track of where you are, avoids misreading errors, and lets you focus on the audience (which can be really useful). But if you need a lectern/music-stand in front of you, that's fine too -- just remember to deliver the piece to the audience, not to the paper, and try not to be *completely* dependent upon the printed page."

- Do a lot of prep. Practice (yes, again!) and study the material carefully. From Joe Keshlam: "Performance thought: Even prose is not _unstructured_ text. I'm not sure I could really claim there's a rhythm to it, but there's generally some clear sense of the author's style and the characters' personalities... and if you can develop an ear for those, it actually helps you memorize the material. It's a method-acting sort of thing; once you have a sense of how the character or narrator speaks, it's easier to remember exactly what they actually said."

- Put emotion into your performance. "Get into the emotion of whatever story you're telling," says vixyish in LJ. "It's all about the emotion, whatever that emotion is. That's going to be the thing that hooks your audience, above all else."

- From surrdave in LJ: "A bit of acting goes a long way with spoken word--specifically, using gestures and posture to intensify, interpret, or simply attract visual focus. I'd say at the least stand up to do the spoken piece, which helps get the attention in a chaos circle anyway. It's easy to leap from song to patter to talkin' blues to storytelling with musical interludes to plain ol' storytelling; the key is to maintain the fundamentals of rhythm, pitch variation, dynamics, enunciation... and passion."

- Consider adding musical accompaniment during your recitation. From Paul Bristow: "UK filkcons have also featured storytelling with harp accompaniment - although I think a vital lesson here is to keep it brief, given that some of your audience just won't be into story telling and will get fidgetty. (Of course, an over-long self-indulgent saga is still an over-long self-indulgent saga, whether it is sung to a tune or not.)"

- Consider taking a public speaking course, or at least listen to some well-known performers who use the spoken word effectively. From Jim Poltrone: "One of my favorite orators is the late Shel Silverstein. Listen to him read "Someone Ate The Baby" or "The Smoke-Off". There's vocal variety (pitch, volume, cadence, even character voices), descriptive words (I can see pictures in my mind when he speaks), and enthusiasm. Christine Lavin is another performer who often reads prose or poetry during her concerts, and some have been featured on her albums. Listen to these and other spoken-word performers, and try to imitate them. Or better yet, develop your own style. And one more thing: No. Shatner. Impressions. Please! :-)"

Any stage etiquette tips for performers?

Survey: Any tips for performers re: stage etiquette? Please post your answer at the bottom of this page, and I'll integrate it into this FAQ page.



From Tim Ryan:

Know when and were your concert is. If the program book looks like nothing is happening afterward, do not take advantage of it--go into the room with full knowledge of what will take you and the audience to get out of the room on time. It may be committed to something else not in the programming book, be it additional programming or room set-up.

Keep track of time yourself. Be it from a watch, cell-phone, or whatever. Buy a $15 watch or timer if you need one you can see on stage, keep it in your case if you have no other use for it. Or arrange for one person to flash you how many minutes left before the end.

Take personal responsibility for getting things back on time. This is more important for general conventions than say filk cons, or a con where a room is dedicated for filking. Even then, check with your Filk Host (or programming person) if they need you to shorten your concert.

Include time for your take-down. You generally know how long this is. This includes getting your adoring audience out and heading to their next event.

From Dave Weingart:

"Be prepared for your set. Know what songs you’re going to play, in what order, and about how long they take.

Practice. Practice lots. A friend of mine has a sign up at his place: 'An amateur practices until he gets it right. A professional practices until he can’t get it wrong.' The very best thing you can do is be prepared. Practice your onstage banter, practice the songs, practice your timing, practice your body language."

From Mark Berstein:

"Everything Dave said, plus:

Have a written set list, or a binder containing the words and/or music in order of performance. That way, you never lose track of what’s next.

To expand on 'practice your banter', know in advance what you’re going to say in introducing a piece. It doesn’t have to be memorized, just a mental outline.

Speaking of memorization, memorizing your songs, poems, stories, etc., is a Very Good Thing. It allows you to focus on the audience. (You may still want to have words in front of you, just in case, but refer to them as little as possible.)

Sing for yourself and the audience, not the tape. If the recording sounds good, that’s a bonus, but not the primary concern.

Never, ever, apologize in advance. Don’t talk about how you have a cold, or your guitar is being temperamental, or anything that carries a whiff of 'This isn’t going to be any good, and here’s why.' Just relax and have fun, and the audience will, too.

If you make a mistake, keep going. Do not stop and restart the song unless everything is so screwed up that you have no choice. Guaranteed, 95% of the audience won’t notice, remember, or care about that bad note or dropped line."

From Christine Hintermeyer:

"I’m terribly sorry to say that, but: don’t apologise!!! ;o)

The audience is there to enjoy a show. They will tolarate many things short of a good show. But the more professional you’re about it the more you’ll really entertain your audience. Every minute you’re not singing/playing or tell them something funny is a minute they’re more likely to be bored and it’s wasted stage time for both parties involved.

So:

- don’t apologise; smile and sing!

- don’t explain the background of a song in more than one main sentence - if I haven’t read the book I don’t want a summary of it now; have trust in your song and that the perfomance will carry the entertainment; have you ever heard Queen explain what’s the meaning of Bohemian Rhapsody? No one understands that song. No one’s complaining either. This is REALLY important advice for people who write role playing songs. Trust me: we don’t want to know ANYthing else but what you’ll give us IN the song!

:o)"

From John O'Halloran:

"If the con has provided sound reenforcement, ie: mics and a pa system…

If at all possible let the sound crew know in advance what your technical needs are or explain what you’ll be doing on stage.

'Just me and my acustic' are enough if it’s just you.

'Vocal and guitar plug-in. On my 3rd song, I drum' helps with change ups.

'3 backup singers, a back up guitar player and a electric piano' are definitly things to say in advance.

Be polite, but firm if their fussing is bothering you. 'Please stop adjusting the mic, I’m not settled yet.' The mics should be set to how you perform, not you change to use the mics.

However, once you start, don’t suddenly step 2 paces back and 1 to the side either. (Yes, that has happened.)

If you don’t know how to sing into a mic, let the crew know. They can set the mics and the levels to be unobtrusive, yet still give you good sound.

Ignore the equipment and sing to your audience."

From Mich:

"Like these! A few quick thoughts:

* During the set, don’t lose your temper with, or be rude to, the other performers on stage with you, the tech crew, or anyone else helping you make your set happen. Doing a set is a privilege and a joy, not a right, as is any help you’re getting. If you do it at no other times, from the moment you step on stage for your pre-set sound-check, be professional and courteous. To do otherwise reflects badly on you.

* During the set, don’t get angry with yourself. Even if you’re seething inside about missing the instrumental you’d been working on for months because your fingers unexpectedly turned to bananas, force yourself to be unconcerned while on the stage. The audience picks up on anger and, in the UK, makes them embarrassed and want to be somewhere else!

* Give the tech crew what they need ahead of time. e.g. set list. If they want you for sound-check, even if it means you miss something cool, turn up. They’re doing this to help you. Be gracious. Help them.

* Don’t diva. Unless you’ve been told by the concom ahead of time, never assume that you are allowed to over-run. If the concom express any concern about letting you over-run e.g. if you say “do I have time for one more?” and they say “um, not really” or frown, then stop, smile and thank everyone, and get off the stage. The audience will cope. The concom gave you the set. Don’t kick ‘em in the face.

* Without doing a awards speech, give credit where it’s due. (I’m guilty sometimes of being so caught up in the moment that I forget to say who wrote the songs we’re playing, so I need to factor this into my banter…) And thank the audience at the end - they took time out to hear you. “Thanks very much for listening; hope you enjoyed the set - we really did - see you later!”

Stage performing - we LOVES it!

Mich x"

From Gary McGath:

"Keep an eye on your time as you come to the end of your set. Don’t come to the end of your time with a weak piece and then say, “Oh, there’s this piece which I REALLY wanted to end with; can I have just five more minutes?” Plan in advance which pieces in your set list you can drop if you don’t have enough time, and always make your next-to-last song droppable."

From Rick Hewett:

"If your set is really complicated and involves lots of tech adjustment then arrange an ahead-of-time sound-check with the tech crew. Make sure you have a song-by-song who-sings/plays-what list for them to follow, including a clear title for each song and an indication of which one(s) you might drop if time runs short. That way, the techies stand a chance, and re-arrangement during the set will go more smoothly. Of course, it will help if you plan your set with tech adjustments in mind too… ;)"

From Bill Sutton:

"What they said.

Christine Lavin has excellent tips for performing songwriters at http://www.christinelavin.com/tips.html - many of these apply well to general stage etiquette.

One thing I would emphasize is to reduce the amount of talk between songs to a minimum that fits with your personality. If your performing persona depends on telling stories and bantering with the audience, include your talk time in calculating the length of your set list."

From Steve Savitzky:

"Never explain! Never apologize!

Well, hardly ever. But if a song can’t stand on its own without a lengthy explanation, consider setting the explanation to music, unless storytelling is part of your act. In that case, rehearse your intro as intensively as you do your songs.

At a venue like a filk convention, with short concert slots and a tight schedule, there’s often no opportunity for a proper sound-check. Consider setting up microphones and a monitor speaker in your rehearsal space, and figuring out the tech before-hand.

Make sure one or two of your songs are easily dropped, and know exactly how long you need for your finale. (Gary says “next-to-last song”, but sometimes you’ll have two or three that go together.) Have an extra song in reserve just in case you have time for it. Don’t laugh — it can happen!

Sometimes you can arrange things with the preceding or following act to make for a smoother transition — this is especially true if there’s some overlap in the performers. Be sure to warn the Toastmaster, and use their introduction to get yourselves sorted out.

Don’t just practice the songs — practice the stuff between the songs, too."


Other suggestions?