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First (now second time)time playing live!

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NikkoNikko Frets: 1803
edited July 2016 in Live

As part of the curriculum where I get lessons, we do a student gig every 3 to 4 months. At last nights lesson we were given a date for the next one, which will be on the 5th December. Our tutor has given us the song he wants us to learn, and we went through the arrangement last night for the first time.

To say im nervous is a MASSIVE understatement! Apart from obvious things like making sure my equipment is correct etc, are there any tips that you seasoned giggers could give me? Do you still get nervous? How do you deal with it? Is it all about preparation? I want to make sure I have the song absolutely down before stepping on to that stage!

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  • not_the_djnot_the_dj Frets: 7306
    edited November 2015
    Nikko said:

     Is it all about preparation? I want to make sure I have the song absolutely down before stepping on to that stage!

    This.

    Learn it, relax as best you can, and enjoy it!
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  • CirrusCirrus Frets: 8481
    edited November 2015
    I'm 30, I've gigged loads, I still get nervous pretty much unpredictably and with no correlation to how important the gig is or how many people are there.

    If I could offer any advice at all, it would be just to practice your part lots. Everything will feel a little bit harder on stage, so go that extra mile to make it harder to fuck up because at some point during the song you'll probably be focussing on something else like "am I standing in a cool way" or "Why is that guy at the back of the room not looking like he's enjoying himself?". 
    :-O

    Something I try to do personally is to make sure I eat well on the day of the gig and try to get a good meal before I start getting nervous. The other thing is channeling nerves into excitement - nerves are good once you work out a system to do this. Personally, there's some little things that help me do this - putting my contacts in, doing my hair and chosing a good gig t-shirt help me feel like I'm deliberately preparing to perform, and little rituals like changing my guitar strings and making sure I've got all my equipment sorted become a form of meditation.

    The main thing though is to remember it's fun, that you're not saving lives, and enjoy yourself!
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  • It's perfectly natural... All part of it, channel that nervous energy into your performance. You'll be the star of the show :) Enjoy it !!
    Give a man a fire and he's warm for the day. But set fire to him and he's warm for the rest of his life
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  • fretmeisterfretmeister Frets: 23951
    1 song will be over before you know it!

    I reckon a longer set is actually easier as you have a chance to relax and enjoy it - if the 1st song is played well then the nerves go and the rest of the set is easy.

    Timing is all - IMHO audiences notice timing issues more than the odd wrong note (unless you are a singer)

    Nerves will make you play faster, so really concentrate on the rhythm - if you have a drummer work out a simple signal that makes him slow down - if you play the tune slightly slower than you think is right - it will probably be spot on!

    Above all - DO NOT ignore your band mates. Lots of eye contact to make sure everyone knows what they are doing and just as importantly for a 1st performance, no one feels "abandoned" or lost on stage. Little nods to each other at the times for choruses / solos / bridges etc work wonders for confidence.

    Best of luck!
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  • Me and stage fright... :( ...
    Preparation, work out where the loos are in the venue so you can have a piddle five minutes before show time (seriously), don't do anything that would wind you up anyway like too much caffeine or getting into an argument or running late for the venue. Doing stuff that puts you in the right frame of mind like putting on your bestest shirt works for some people (like Cirrus!) and remember it's only playing a song, the worst that can happen is mild embarrassment.
    Tipton is a small fishing village in the borough of Sandwell. 
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  • IanSavageIanSavage Frets: 1319
    edited November 2015

    Practise at home (or ideally at gig volume, with band) whilst standing up, even in front of a mirror. You might feel a bit daft, but a) it makes certain that the change in posture from sitting to standing (if you usually practise sitting down) doesn't throw you, and b) you might notice any little foibles in your performance / stance.

    You don't have to be throwing rock star shapes and jumping off shit (that's me and @JonnyScaramanga 's job ;) ) but keeping your back straight and head up helps project an air of 'no problem, do this shit every day' as well as encouraging you to be looking at the audience rather than your fretboard.

    Oh, and get your foot tapping - I'm amazed at the number of amateur / 'semi-pro' bands I see where there's not a single foot tapping onstage, everyone but the drummer near-motionless, and unsurprisingly the rhythm drifts like an Impreza on a beach.


    Last thing - even if it's just one song, take a spare guitar. You're 99.99% certain not to need it, but it's a comfort blanket that might stop you getting nervous about what happens if a string breaks or your electronics go down during soundcheck.

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  • Taking a spare guitar stops anything going wrong with your main one. Guitars are pack animals and get lonely and fall to peices if you only take one.
    Tipton is a small fishing village in the borough of Sandwell. 
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  • When I get changed before I go on, it's almost like putting on a persona. Become the guitarist you'd admire... cool, in control.

    When the adrenaline kicks in you have to use it as a positive force, by turning the butterfly feeling into excitement for what a great experience your going to have, instead of anxiety over what might go wrong. Tell yourself "This is going to be awesome", "This is what I've been practicing for" that kind of thing.

    This might not apply to you this time around, but I have in the past made the first song something I can just bash out and stomp my foot to. That burns off a lot of the adrenaline too.

    Obviously be prepared, but ultimately enjoy it. It's a great hobby and everyone in the crowd will be wishing you well enjoying hearing you play.

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  • NikkoNikko Frets: 1803

    Thanks all for the advice/encouragement so far, its much appreciated. Lots of practising (I call it Wife annoyance) to be done!!

    Incidentally, playing to an audience is something thats been on my bucket list for a while, so im just going to try and embrace it.


    Thanks again.

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  • Just say to yourself what's the worst that can happen. A momentary cock up maybe but it's not the end of the world. Feel the fear and then do it anyway. Held me in good stead all these years
    Link to my trading feedback:  http://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/59452/
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  • Prepare to be nervous.  I'm a pretty calm type and the first time I went on stage it somehow never occurred to be I'd be nervous.  It wasn't even my gig, we were invited up at the interval by another band.  I strapped on the guitarist's Les Paul, turned round to adjust the mike (I sang in those days tho' I no longer do) looked at the sea of faces and my legs turned to jelly. In fact it was when I learned what the phase meant, I literally doubted that my knees could support my weight, because they just felt soft and bendy.  Terrifying.  At least if I'd anticipated it I would have had some sort of coping strategy.  Hearing how weird and not-me my speaking voice sounded making announcements through a mike didn't help either. Cue a dizzy blur in which I hardly knew what I was doing.

    Also, prepare to make mistakes, unless you're a prodigy or playing very, very simple stuff. You may prepare well, you may think you know everything, but you probably don't know it well enough to get through every song perfect from start to finish on every single play-through.  Remember that your fellow musicians will probably only notice a fraction of your mistakes, and the audience rarely notices any.  I've lost count of the number of gigs I've come off stage thinking I've made a total tit of myself only to find that absolutely no-one spotted the (to me) glaring howlers I'm beating myself up about. 
    “To a man with a hammer every problem looks like a nail.”
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  • Don't stare at your feet and you'll be fine btw
    Give a man a fire and he's warm for the day. But set fire to him and he's warm for the rest of his life
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  • GrunfeldGrunfeld Frets: 4028
    @Nikko Where abouts in the UK are you?
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  • NikkoNikko Frets: 1803
    Im in Essex :)
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  • GrunfeldGrunfeld Frets: 4028
    PM incoming
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  • Go to a local jam night for a blast first. Blow some of the cobwebs off!
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  • bigjonbigjon Frets: 680
    In addition to the stance advice so far given, spread your legs a little bit wider than you usually would - makes you look far more confident.

    Daydream performing the song over, including getting up on stage, plugging in etc. The pros call this 'visualisation' but 'daydreaming' works as well for me ;-)

    At the end, raise your hand in acknowledgement of the applause, applaud your band mates, and shake hands with / high-five the other band members, to con the audience that you all did a fantastic job.
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  • I once read some advice about imagining you are wearing a cape (style of your choosing) when you enter a room. Apply this to the stage too. Look like you belong there and are enjoying it, and people will believe you. Even YOU might believe you!


    I'm just a Maserati in a world of Kias.
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  • bigjon said:

    At the end, raise your hand in acknowledgement of the applause, applaud your band mates, and shake hands with / high-five the other band members, to con the audience that you all did a fantastic job.
    Lol!!
    Also to the cape thing!
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  • NikkoNikko Frets: 1803

    Thanks all again for the tips/advice. I think ive got a cape somewhere...dont ask :D

    This weekend, I plugged my phone into my amp and actually played along with the song NUMEROUS times, and im pretty sure ill be ok come gig day (playing-wise). Just going to stock up on immodium I reckon!

    At this point, ive told the missus that she isnt allowed to come and watch, but ill see how I feel closer to the time.

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