Who's never played to an audience?

siraxeman

Sassafras said:

Ten seconds into a set I'm deciding which audience member is coming home with me.

Do ya look to see who's strongest and most able to pack and unpack the van? ;-)

Danielsguitars

Fez said:k

@customkits I live in Crawley, it would be great to get together for a pint and a chinwag. Come to think about it we are long overdue a southern area beer & social.

I'd be up for a pint and chinwag

Sassafras

siraxeman said:

Sassafras said:

Ten seconds into a set I'm deciding which audience member is coming home with me.

Do ya look to see who's strongest and most able to pack and unpack the van? ;-)

What else matters?

PolarityMan

Does playing *at* an audience count?

RMJ

I've played to an audience a grand total of 3 times. All of those were when I was in school which was a long time ago. After school the guitar went under the bed for 10 years and I rarely got it out again.  

I wish I had carried on playing gigs, or at least in a band. As well as the craic I would have been a much better guitar player.  In the rare occasion I get to play with a band now it's practice only but I love it. Nothing like playing with a bunch of other sweaty men.

Dontgiveupyourdayjob

I played loads of piano recitals/concerts when I was a teenager, some to pretty decent sized audiences. I also then went on to play guitar and/or keys in various little bands in college and 1st year Uni. 

Then I smashed my left wrist up pretty bad playing footy, couldn't play either instrument for months on end, and basically completely fell out of the habit of ever playing with other people. 

I have not played in front of anyone aside from my better half for over 17 years now - I feel as though my concert 'virginity' has grown back! I'd probably be sh!t scared to get up in front of an audience again, but I'm itching to give it a go again! 

Sassafras

I like the camaraderie and being in the company of like minded individuals.
For a while, anyway.

Sassafras

Plectrum said:

Legionreturns said:

Here's another thought... In the modern world, playing gigs can reach a hundred or so at best in the amateur world... Sitting in your bedroom with a camera can reach millions, and you get to edit out your mistakes and try it as many times as you like before letting the world see it. Is YouTube the new open mic? 

No. Because nothing beats playing in front of a live audience.

There have been times when I wasn't convinced the audiences were alive.

Plectrum

Sassafras said:

Plectrum said:

Legionreturns said:

Here's another thought... In the modern world, playing gigs can reach a hundred or so at best in the amateur world... Sitting in your bedroom with a camera can reach millions, and you get to edit out your mistakes and try it as many times as you like before letting the world see it. Is YouTube the new open mic? 

No. Because nothing beats playing in front of a live audience.

There have been times when I wasn't convinced the audiences were alive.

I may have played that venue too

OilCityPickups

Plectrum said:

Sassafras said:

Plectrum said:

Legionreturns said:

Here's another thought... In the modern world, playing gigs can reach a hundred or so at best in the amateur world... Sitting in your bedroom with a camera can reach millions, and you get to edit out your mistakes and try it as many times as you like before letting the world see it. Is YouTube the new open mic? 

No. Because nothing beats playing in front of a live audience.

There have been times when I wasn't convinced the audiences were alive.

I may have played that venue too

Some places I played in the 70s ... the vests of the audience were more alive than them!

usedtobe

Ewwwwww.. vests

Jonathangus

No, me neither.

Started playing when I was about 16 or 17, and had a couple of attempts to form a band which went nowhere.  Ended up hardly touching a guitar for over 15 years, but recently got back into it.

Definitely intend to put my name down for SwinJam when it comes up, and I've got something else in the pipeline (which I'll post about separately, rather than hijack the thread).

PhilKing

Played a lot when I was young, from local youth clubs to touring American Army/Air Force bases in Germany.  My first gig was at a mate's dad's pub when I was 14 or 15, and we were rehearsing and they heard us and asked us to play.  We also got paid for it!  I played regularly until my mid 20's, then very rarely until my 40's, when I joined a band in New York and played some of the bars there (though we never really made any money at it).  Went back into hibernation until 2 years ago, when I just turned 60, I was asked to play guitar to accompany a duo singing Indian songs.  I was very nervous before the gig (not least because it was a medley of 3 songs, and I had no language clues to base the changes off of).  It went off really well, with an audience of ~100 and I got the chance to join another band from it.  We've done a couple of gigs (our biggest to over 300 people), and I'm well back into it now.

Go for it if you can, it will be nerve wracking to start with, but rehearsals help a lot, and not looking at the guy who makes a mistake, but playing through it, is also a good tip.  One of my early gigs was at a working man's club and we were doing a cover of Virginia Plain and I started the solo in the wrong key - I just winged it to get it back and at the end of the show, someone came up to say how much they loved it, so always remember that you hear the problems much more than the audience.

Blackjack

Fez said:

Bedroom players are actually important because they buy gear which helps to keep our beloved emporiums open. So don't worry if you don't want to play out. However I would encourage you to try it, the rewards are beyond measure. @customkits I live in Crawley, it would be great to get together for a pint and a chinwag. Come to think about it we are long overdue a southern area beer & social.

If you do a southern area beer and social night let me know, if you don't mind having a female along, be good to get to know local people.

Blackjack

viz said:

mike_l said:

Blackjack said:

I have not played to a 'proper' audience.  Have played twice with some friends at home infront of the other guests but not a real, public audience.  Have been wanting to try a beginners open mic for a while now but most people I speak to about it seem to think I am getting ideas above my ability so not done it yet. Would love to but.... 

fuck the naysayers. Nobody at jam gives a fuck if you're a complete beginner or Steve Vai, all are given support and all are friendly.

Yeah, come on down to Cambridge jam night, even if you just sit and have a drink the first time, just to get the feel of the thing, but you'd be welcomed up to have a go and as Mike says, everyone's just friendly and nice, whatever and however you're playing!

I would love to but it would be a bit of a trek just for the evening as I am about an hour and a half to two hours away from you otherwise I would. Let me know when your next one is and I will see if I can do it 

Blackjack

viz said:

mike_l said:

Blackjack said:

I have not played to a 'proper' audience.  Have played twice with some friends at home infront of the other guests but not a real, public audience.  Have been wanting to try a beginners open mic for a while now but most people I speak to about it seem to think I am getting ideas above my ability so not done it yet. Would love to but.... 

fuck the naysayers. Nobody at jam gives a fuck if you're a complete beginner or Steve Vai, all are given support and all are friendly.

Yeah, come on down to Cambridge jam night, even if you just sit and have a drink the first time, just to get the feel of the thing, but you'd be welcomed up to have a go and as Mike says, everyone's just friendly and nice, whatever and however you're playing!

I would love to but it would be a bit of a trek just for the evening as I am about an hour and a half to two hours away from you otherwise I would. Let me know when your next one is and I will see if I can do it 

mudslide73

I've played loads now but started relatively late at 25-26 (44 now). I only get nervous now when we're playing something new or if I feel under rehearsed. Punters generally want to enjoy themselves and will encourage you even if things go a bit wrong. It's not hard once you've done it a few times. I can't recommend the experience highly enough. 

OilCityPickups

Blackjack said:

Fez said:

Bedroom players are actually important because they buy gear which helps to keep our beloved emporiums open. So don't worry if you don't want to play out. However I would encourage you to try it, the rewards are beyond measure. @customkits I live in Crawley, it would be great to get together for a pint and a chinwag. Come to think about it we are long overdue a southern area beer & social.

If you do a southern area beer and social night let me know, if you don't mind having a female along, be good to get to know local people.

From my experience of our beer nights ... your ability to stand rounds and be as cheerfully nerdy as the rest of us will be the only thing anyone notices :-)
I'm hoping some of our London mob might fancy a beer up soon ... hint hint ... I can bring juicy pickups for you to feel and drool over ... might even try and drag Jonathan up from Feline Guitars ... 

mike_l

Blackjack said:

viz said:

mike_l said:

Blackjack said:

I have not played to a 'proper' audience.  Have played twice with some friends at home infront of the other guests but not a real, public audience.  Have been wanting to try a beginners open mic for a while now but most people I speak to about it seem to think I am getting ideas above my ability so not done it yet. Would love to but.... 

fuck the naysayers. Nobody at jam gives a fuck if you're a complete beginner or Steve Vai, all are given support and all are friendly.

Yeah, come on down to Cambridge jam night, even if you just sit and have a drink the first time, just to get the feel of the thing, but you'd be welcomed up to have a go and as Mike says, everyone's just friendly and nice, whatever and however you're playing!

I would love to but it would be a bit of a trek just for the evening as I am about an hour and a half to two hours away from you otherwise I would. Let me know when your next one is and I will see if I can do it 

Currently Friday evenings 8-30 until 11.

HHwarner

Im 51 and been playing for 20 odd years. Only the past 8 years have i played in a band. I just didnt think I would ever be able to play live. Even the thought of it made my nerves jitter. Like some on here, I couldnt even play in front of my wife. One day I thought, Iv got to have a crack at this so I joined a new band, none of us had ever played live before. A bunch of guys just jamming to start with to see where it would take us. We learned 3 or 4 songs and tried an open mic night. It went down a treat, we even had to play the last song twice as they were asking for more (we had already played all we had learned). Was so nervous that first open mic night I didnt sleep the night before. Iv now been gigging for 8 years solid. Up and down the country, played some fantastic venues in front of some big crowds, tons of great festivals and a lot of small pub gigs. All are great. I dont really get nervous anymore and just love every minute. Just get out and do it, you will surprise yourself. 
The thing is to get up there, dont worry about making mistakes (we all do it), if you look nervous on stage it puts the audience on edge so have a crack, relax and enjoy it and you cant go wrong