When you learn to play an instrument, you put in the practice based on a bunch of rules and ideas you pick up from teachers, books, recordings, a higher power, your ears etc. After a while you get to the point when you feel you are ready to 'take it to the people', and that is when you encounter the most complicated instrument in existence.
An audience.
Yes, it is the audience you are really playing. And it is never the same twice and there is NO practice. You are straight in at the deep end, every time, and it is always the first time.
Last time we talked about getting over that awkward moment when you step in front of the mic for the first time and have to break the ice. But what about after that? How do you keep the audience with you?
When I was first playing gigs, I was obsessed with Bruce Springsteen. I loved the way he would weave stories about each song, and how he seemed to have the audience hanging on every word. So taking a leaf out of his book, I tried to do the same. (I wasn't short of self-esteem at the time!)
Cue tumbleweed. Instead of rapt attention, all I got was the sound of drinks being ordered and increasingly loud conversation.
It turns out that people don't come out to listen to me talk. They come out to listen to me play. They come to dance and sing. And it seems that those long, rambling anecdotes only really work when the audience a) knows and loves the performer already, b) knows the songs really well and c) the stories have some kind of resonance or romance. Bruce is able to create pictures of gangland New Jersey where lovers struggle heroically to break free, because we know he has lived through it. And me? Well let's just say that I don't. Unless I am playing to friends and family, I am just some guy talking too much. There has to be a strong connection before you get the audience's permission to talk a lot.
So the lesson here is...
STEP TWO - Engage often, keep it short and sweet.
Don't rush from one song to another without ever saying anything to the audience. Saying nothing is as bad as talking too much. You might as well be an ipod. Here's some things to try.
Talk to people. 'Hello [insert town/venue name]' works at Wembley Stadium. I have checked on several occasions and it doesn't work so well at The White Horse, McGinty's Sports Bar, or the village hall/local venue, unless you have strong following already and they are all there. In which case banter, banter, banter....
Respond and talk to individuals. If you see someone singing along or dancing, make eye contact, ask them "Did you like that one? Well,this one is for you." It's easier for you because you have a focus. And everyone else gets involved because you are using a microphone. Be careful not to keep talking to the same person all night. That is a bit dull for everyone else especially if the person is drunk and shouting back a lot.
Introduce your favourite songs. 'We like this one. We've been playing it since....[first heard it, it reminds us of....]. But don't be a musicologist. "This song was first recorded in a small town outside of Tupelo on an accordion and a recorder by {someone they've never heard of}. Elvis' second producer's nephew played it to a guy who played sax for {someone they've never heard of} who got to number 5 in Albania with it in 1957 before Fat Boy Slim sampled it on Gangsta Trippin".
Similarly, don't introduce every track the same way - you'll sound like a wedding DJ. Try this - "Are there any {insert band} fans here? [Yes]. This is for the guy in the blue t-shirt buying me a pint!"
Talk about what's happening - in the gig or in the news. What do you see going on? I played a small outdoor acoustic gig on the day Amy Winehouse died. I saw the news on my phone about 30 minutes before we went on. We quickly learned Rehab and I announced 'we are celebrating Amy - this is called Rehab. You know the words'. It was sunny. Everybody sang (bellowed actually) and overlooked the fact that I was playing on ukulele.
If its a birthday or a wedding - choosing tracks or news from the day X was born/turned 18 or 21/got married is an easy way to find something engaging to say.
Use a little humour. I play 500 miles by The Proclaimers. I find it impossible to resist the temptation to sing it in a really bad fake Scottish accent. I introduce it by asking if there is anyone Scottish in the audience. If I get a 'yes' I make a profuse apology for what I am going to do to their accent. IMPORTANT: Sarcasm doesn't work in a crowd. I don't know why. I wish it did. I think it is because with sarcasm, half the joke is in your head.
Include the band. I play with a band called Fraudio. Liam, the singer, does a great job of introducing some songs while the band is playing the intro. The first time I rehearsed with them I discovered that this wasn't an accident - it had been rehearsed or at least agreed. And that is only professional.
The overall aim is to play off the audience as much as you can. Some preparation is really important - thinking about it for the first time in front of an audience is a horrible experience. Take some time over it so that you can do it comfortably without stumbling. I know my examples will look artificial - the first few times you do it, it may feel artificial - but it will get more natural as you find your own tricks. And as http://www.youtube.com/user/MrStuClark told me once, it doesn't matter if you stretch the truth a little. He once introduced www.adamrafferty.com at a gig I booked saying, "Fresh from Obama's inauguration party...". Nobody batted an eyelid - it was completely believable.
Finally, be prepared to stop doing some of the things you do. Anything that gets silence or tumbleweed needs to go, no matter how clever it is. It's all about their response to what you're doing.
Next time, we'll explore nerves and getting over mistakes...
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