only4 Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 Our singer of 3 years now still insists on having his lyric book on a music stand when ever we perform. I'm not sure if it's just a comfort thing because he seems to have nailed the delivery of all the material, but i'm never sure how muso audiences feel about this plus it's always visible on any photos we have which is a bit of a shame. Hes got a great voice so we don't want to rock the boat as it took quite a while to find him after we parted company with our last frontman. Whats the general consensus of opinion to this and is an ipad attached to the mic stand any more acceptable? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad3353 Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 You're the bass player, and would maybe not like to have to change instrument just because the band feels it's not 'acceptable'. He's the singer, and should have the same privilege and respect, I'd suggest. Of course the 'issue' could be discussed, but he decides what he needs (or wants...) for the gigs. For my part, I've never bought into this 'acceptable' stuff; I've seen too many bands with all sorts of stuff on stage for it to count for anything. As long as your show is good, such props are of no relevance. Just my tuppence-worth. 2 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulWarning Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 Ah! the old music stand debate, I don't like it at all, especially for the singer, he's the focal point of the band he should be interacting with the audience not staring at the lyrics, like you say it's crutch if it's there he'll use it, I used to have one when I started doing open mics, I got rid of it, if it's there you'll look at it. Our singer will sometimes have lyric reminders on the floor of new songs we're doing but soon gets rid of them The only time a music stand should be used is if you're depping, otherwise, learn the songs 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisJaxon Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 Our frontman has a small ipad clipped to his mike stand, which has the set list in order so he simply swipes from one song to the next, you hardly notice it. Apart from the words (just in case!) it also has the song structures, any extra bits we flung in at the last moment, so it is a good aide mémoire and quite unobtrusive. He orchestrates the whole shebang from the front, so really, especially as we become prone to 'senior moments' it is almost an essential! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad3353 Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 4 minutes ago, PaulWarning said: ...not staring at the lyrics... A case of slight exaggeration there, maybe..? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 49 minutes ago, only4 said: Our singer of 3 years now still insists on having his lyric book on a music stand when ever we perform. I'm not sure if it's just a comfort thing because he seems to have nailed the delivery of all the material, but i'm never sure how muso audiences feel about this plus it's always visible on any photos we have which is a bit of a shame. Hes got a great voice so we don't want to rock the boat as it took quite a while to find him after we parted company with our last frontman. Whats the general consensus of opinion to this and is an ipad attached to the mic stand any more acceptable? Just be grateful you've got such a good singer. The only deciding factor for me is do they sing well. I know guys using folders, ipads and memory. If they are good at their job then I'm happy for them to use whatever props they need. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daz39 Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 Perhaps they struggle to remember them onstage? I think Michael Stipe does/did have lyrics on the floor because he would blank when onstage. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulWarning Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 from my own very limited experience of singing you can sing the song better if you know the lyrics without having to think to hard about them or even worse, read them 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 10 minutes ago, PaulWarning said: from my own very limited experience of singing you can sing the song better if you know the lyrics without having to think to hard about them or even worse, read them Most of the big touring bands, including Bowie, The Stones, Dave Gilmour etc, use prompts in case the singer gets distracted or forgets the words or arrangements. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Starr Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 I've no doubts that a frontman/woman is better if they are concentrating on the audience than looking down but in the end the most important thing is that everyone is enjoying themselves. Most bands aren't full time professionals so expecting some sort of ideal isn't really sensible. Having the singer going to the wrong part of the song or breaking time when they mess up is pretty disruptive so it all comes down to compromise. iPads are less obtrusive and I'm seeing them more and more, do it if you have to I guess. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Dare Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 I agree with Phil and others. The most important thing is to get it right and if the singer (or any musician) needs a reminder or even a comfort blanket, that's fair enough. As a matter of interest, I prefer a conventional music stand to an iPad, because it looks a bit naff to see a musician's or singer's face illuminated by the blue glow from the screen. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lojo Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 (edited) If I go to see a semi pro or weekend warrior band or they are booked for a wedding or party then a music stand to help the singer get through 30 songs is acceptable to me , as long as the general quality is there . If I go to see Iron Maiden or a £25 per ticket tribute act , then it's not Pesonally as someone who worked a day job and played in bands , learning lot she of basslines well was sometimes a big ask , so I sympathise with singers in similar situations and understand the need Edited May 9, 2018 by lojo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EssentialTension Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 If it's OK to have frets instead of simply learning where the notes are, then it's OK to have a music stand instead of simply learning what the words are. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretmeister Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 Depends entirely on the type of show. Big Band type thing with complex arrangements where the players are pretty stationary - stands are pretty common. Rock band - Nope. Not now. Not ever. Everyone else in the band has to learn their parts so they can tart around and put on a show. The singer is the most visible element of any band. A music stand completely ruins the performance for that type of show. Imagine any good rock / pop / funk band you like. Queen / Iron Maiden / Metallica / Prince / RHCP etc etc and think how bloody awful it would be if there was a music stand up there. But even if we ignore those - most of the other local rock bands won't have stands and your singer is going to look like a twonk next to them. If the rest of the band can learn a 30 song set list then so can the singer. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretmeister Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 5 hours ago, Daz39 said: Perhaps they struggle to remember them onstage? I think Michael Stipe does/did have lyrics on the floor because he would blank when onstage. So did Ozzy when he was smacked out of his head. It was also really obvious when he was staring at the edge of the stage. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 16 minutes ago, fretmeister said: Rock band - Nope. Not now. Not ever. But even if we ignore those - most of the other local rock bands won't have stands and your singer is going to look like a twonk next to them. If the rest of the band can learn a 30 song set list then so can the singer. Stop sitting on the fence. . . . ! 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lojo Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 Either as band mates or employees you have to take people as they are pros and cons . One of the singers I play with uses a stand even after years of doing the same songs , however I've played with singers who don't need a stand who can't sing a Ballard like she does . 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EssentialTension Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 45 minutes ago, lojo said: Either as band mates or employees you have to take people as they are pros and cons . One of the singers I play with uses a stand even after years of doing the same songs , however I've played with singers who don't need a stand who can't sing a Ballard like she does . I have played with a singer who regularly uses a music stand. He was by far the best singer I have worked with. No-one ever came up to me and said 'your singer has a music stand, thats terrible'. Many people came up to me and said 'your singer is fantastic'. Most audience members won't even know what a music stand is. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paddy109 Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 (edited) Edited May 9, 2018 by paddy109 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Dare Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 2 hours ago, EssentialTension said: Most audience members won't even know what a music stand is. Exactly. They just see another piece of bent metal, together with mic stands, cymbal stands, etc, etc and ignore it if the music's any good. As far as the "learn your parts" comments on here are concerned, that's fine if you play the same 20 songs every night, but if you take requests or have a large repertoire (some items from which you may not have performed for a while), you need parts, words, etc. That's why orchestras, jazz bands, etc, use the dots. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FinnDave Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 Music stand for a singer? Seems a fair swap, where do I send the singer to? 1 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jezzaboy Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 Good singers are hard to find so I would cut them some slack. Having said that, an ipad on a mic stand looks a lot better than a A4 folder. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Blank Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 Just google on stage telepromter bands and see how many rock bands use them. As someone who spent many years working backstage I can safely say it’s many more bands than most people would imagine who use them. I think the operative here is prompt, many bands have them there as much for security as anything else, in case they need a prompt rther than actually relying on it. It seems like a bad thing until you realise you’ve seen some brilliant bands performing brilliantly whilst using them, it’s just they can afford the type of teleprompter audiences can’t see. I suppose it’s easy to judge until you need one yourself. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrevorR Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 3 hours ago, EssentialTension said: I have played with a singer who regularly uses a music stand. He was by far the best singer I have worked with. No-one ever came up to me and said 'your singer has a music stand, thats terrible'. Many people came up to me and said 'your singer is fantastic'. Most audience members won't even know what a music stand is. I have played with a singer who regularly used a music stand. No-one ever came up to me and said 'Your singer has a music stand, thats terrible'. Many people came up to me and said ‘Your singer is gorgeous. Is she single?'. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Count Bassy Posted May 10, 2018 Share Posted May 10, 2018 8 hours ago, fretmeister said: Rock band - Nope. Not now. Not ever. Everyone else in the band has to learn their parts so they can tart around and put on a show. The singer is the most visible element of any band. A music stand completely ruins the performance for that type of show. Imagine any good rock / pop / funk band you like. Queen / Iron Maiden / Metallica / Prince / RHCP etc etc and think how bloody awful it would be if there was a music stand up there. But even if we ignore those - most of the other local rock bands won't have stands and your singer is going to look like a twonk next to them. If the rest of the band can learn a 30 song set list then so can the singer. This !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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