How Many Readers Of This Site Actually Go Out And Gig?

[bass_in_ya_face]

I only ask because I read a comment on another thread that made my blood boil.

Apparently you aren't a real musician unless you go out and play 'in the field' so to speak.

I like to class myself as a musician, not a very good one but i'm making music. I read music, I'd like to take some exams...does that not make me a musician?...Mick Karn doesn't read music or even know what notes he is playing...maybe he isn't a 'real' musician either.

Personally, I play for a hobby and would love to go and play with a band etc. Sadly I have other commitments and like my wife and kids and a job and could not dedicate the hours I would need to rehearse/gig.

If we are going to get that sort of snobbery towards hobby bassists, I personally will stop contributing to this forum.

That's the sort of condesending attitude i'd expect a guitarist to make towards a bass player

Edited September 25, 2007 by bass_in_ya_face

[misrule]

I'm in the same boat as you -- but I gig occasionally. I do it for fun, I'm not a great musician and I'm not after rock star status.

I'm not much bothered what other people think. If the crowd seem to enjoy what we do, that's enough for me.

If you enjoy your music, whatever level you're at, that's all that matters.

Don't leave us yet

Cheers

Mark

[Rich]

I play a lot of gigs and have done for years, but I'm no more a 'real' musician than you are.
Surely a 'fake musician, i.e. not a 'real' one, is someone who only plays air guitar..?

[Mike]

I gig regularly but I don't think you're less of a musician if you don't.

[Machines]

I've been in a band about a year and played about 7 gigs. I like them but do get fedup if there's too many. We'll be staying in the studio for the rest of the year recording most likely.

[Soulfinger]

[quote name='bass_in_ya_face' post='65148' date='Sep 25 2007, 08:01 AM']Personally, I play for a hobby and would love to go and play with a band etc. Sadly I have other commitments and like my wife and kids and a job and could not dedicate the hours I would need to rehearse/gig.[/quote]

Not playing gigs does not make anyone a lesser musician IMHO.

I know several killer musicians who quit playing in public because they feel it´s no longer worth the hassle. I have hundreds of gigs under my belt myself (as a drummer and as a trumpet player) and I know the feeling. I don´t need a stage, but I need the interaction with other musicians, jamming etc. It´s just too much fun.

I have a wife and two kids and ever changing work hours, but I did join my first band as a bass player recently and having a blast. Not gigging yet, but we´ll see...

[Sean]

I've always gigged, it's a way of life. I go cold turkey if I don't gig for a few weeks. As Soulfinger says, it's all abot the interaction with other musicians but I'd add the audience to that too - I love watching them reacting to the band playing. Knowing that your playing is making the audience happy and providing a bit of escape always gives me a real buzz.

[stewblack]

[quote name='bass_in_ya_face' post='65148' date='Sep 25 2007, 07:01 AM']If we are going to get that sort of snobbery towards hobby bassists, I personally will stop contributing to this forum.

That's the sort of condescending attitude i'd expect a guitarist to make towards a bass player [/quote]

Whilst I have always played in gigging bands, though many didn't gig that regularly and certainly not well paid or prestigious gigs, and I love the buzz that I get when I connect with another musician , I utterly support you in your post.
The attitude to which you refer is some kind of rank snobbery and best ignored. Your posts, your experience and your ideas are as valuable on this forum as would be those of a professional musician gigging 300 times a year.
One of the bands I'm in hardly ever gigs and to be honest we don't care the most important thing for us is songwriting and recording. So please don't stop posting, I've always found the majority of people here helpful, wise, funny and without a grain of the patronising attitude which irked you so much.

[obbm]

I get out and gig, between 2 and 6 times a month. I couldn't live without them.

There is so much you learn playing in a band in front of a live audience that you cannot possibly get from playing alone at home, with friends or in a recording studio. It not a case of whether you are a better or worse musician, it's just a broadening of the experience. Timing, anticipation, you have to watch, listen, be prepared for the unexpected and then work out how to deal with it.

I for one hate the pressures of a recording studio, give me a live gig any day.

[wateroftyne]

Having just seen the comment concerned, I kind-of agree with the sentiment that made your blood boil, simply because it has to be a two-way process.

Someone with happenin' chops, flailing away in their bedroom while looking down their noses at someone with limited ability who is out there doing it, won't really connect with me.

[bass_in_ya_face]

[quote name='stewblack' post='65159' date='Sep 25 2007, 07:59 AM']Whilst I have always played in gigging bands, though many didn't gig that regularly and certainly not well paid or prestigious gigs, and I love the buzz that I get when I connect with another musician , I utterly support you in your post.
The attitude to which you refer is some kind of rank snobbery and best ignored. Your posts, your experience and your ideas are as valuable on this forum as would be those of a professional musician gigging 300 times a year.
One of the bands I'm in hardly ever gigs and to be honest we don't care the most important thing for us is songwriting and recording. So please don't stop posting, I've always found the majority of people here helpful, wise, funny and without a grain of the patronising attitude which irked you so much.[/quote]


thankyou. I have great fun on here bouncing ideas of people and asking questions.

The other thing that irritated me was the pack mentality of taking the mickey out of the young lad trying to tackle 'My Generation'. Christ I bet most of the 'pro's' on here couldn't make it sound like The Ox either. Pino Palladino doesn't.

[BigRedX]

I'm not a particularly good bass player technically and would certainly find myself in the lower half as regards playing ability in this forum, however, for me the whole point of being a musician is to be able to interact with other musicians. This is the point where something magical happens that you don't get when playing alone, and as others have already said that goes up another level when it happens in front of an audience.

As for the ammount of time my band takes up it's about 4 hours, one night a week for rehearsal including travelling and loading/unloading time. Not a terribly big commitment, and the others in the band have far more pressing commitments than I do, but somehow we all manage to find the time once a week to get together. In between I practice mainly because I like music and I like to play but I don't really need to, and it makes little difference to how we play as a band - that only happens when we play as a band. We gig far too infreqently - about every 8 weeks, but there's nothing I know of that beats the rush of playing well in front of an enthusiastic audience.

Also if I wasn't in a band I doubt whether I'd have chosen bass as my first instrument, I'd probably have concentrated on something more soloist friendly like guitar or keyboards.

YMMV

[Mrs Tinman]

[quote name='Rich' post='65152' date='Sep 25 2007, 07:37 AM']Surely a 'fake musician, i.e. not a 'real' one, is someone who only plays air guitar..? [/quote]


Oh poop, I've been rumbled as a 'fake' then

Whilst normally a fine and upstanding member of the community (stop sniggering - I can see you, you know ) there's just something about The Ataris' version of 'Boys of Summer' that makes me leap about playing air guitar

Its OK, they're coming to take me away, haha

In answer to the original question, I can't play bass (or do anything remotely musical), but I attend all of Tinman's gigs and am his biggest fan, and number one band groupie

[alexclaber]

I don't gig a lot, certainly over the last few years I seem to have spent all my time auditioning musicians, writing songs, recording and so on. My band has had a stable line-up for a year now, we're just finishing our first EP and it seems time to start pushing ourselves on the gigging scene.

I would encourage non-giggers to seek out jam nights or other musicians who are equally time poor and would be up for getting together for jams in the rehearsal room - bass is such an ensemble instrument that you learn so much once you're working as part of that team. Alternatively experiment with recording on your own - multitracking is a wonderful tool - either putting together covers of songs you like or writing new music. Once you listen back to such a recording your strengths and weaknesses become far more obvious thus allowing you to address them when practising.

Alex

[bass_in_ya_face]

Just as a side issue, when I feel i'm at a standard where I can hold my own with other muscians, where do you actively find muscians of a similar standard/age who want to make a noise together?

[nig]

I play 2 to 3 times a week, ive been pro, semi pro and...resting,played covers, written origional stuff etc... all over the last 28 years, I dont read, I did, I enjoy myself, express myself and earn money, if you play and enjoy what you do and find somthing thru music that inspires you, thats good enough, theres alot of snobbery in every walk of life, eventually you realise its all bo##ocks. A musician is a person who plays music, whatever style or level. enjoy.

[bass_in_ya_face]

[quote name='nig' post='65173' date='Sep 25 2007, 08:46 AM']I play 2 to 3 times a week, ive been pro, semi pro and...resting,played covers, written origional stuff etc... all over the last 28 years, I dont read, I did, I enjoy myself, express myself and earn money, if you play and enjoy what you do and find somthing thru music that inspires you, thats good enough, theres alot of snobbery in every walk of life, eventually you realise its all bo##ocks. A musician is a person who plays music, whatever style or level. enjoy. [/quote]

The most intelligent thing i've read on here.

[wateroftyne]

[quote name='bass_in_ya_face' post='65172' date='Sep 25 2007, 08:42 AM']Just as a side issue, when I feel i'm at a standard where I can hold my own with other muscians, where do you actively find muscians of a similar standard/age who want to make a noise together?[/quote]

As has already been mentioned, buskers nights / open mic nights / jam nights are a breeding ground for bands of all levels.

FWIW, I'm like Sean - I get cranky if I go for three or four nights without a gig. I've been like that for years...

[s_u_y_*]

I gig regularly about 1-3 times a month. Live performance is one aspect musicianship, but there are many others which can be developed. It just depends where you see yourself and where your state of mind is at.

But surely anyone who looks down upon another isn't worth giving the time of day really.

[alexclaber]

[quote name='bass_in_ya_face' post='65172' date='Sep 25 2007, 08:42 AM']Just as a side issue, when I feel i'm at a standard where I can hold my own with other muscians, where do you actively find muscians of a similar standard/age who want to make a noise together?[/quote]

You'll never feel like you can hold your own, the better you get the further you realise you have to go - just dive in and hope!

I found all my bandmates here:

[url="http://www.musofinder.co.uk/"]http://www.musofinder.co.uk/[/url]

and here:

[url="http://www.musicians-in-your-city.co.uk/"]http://www.musicians-in-your-city.co.uk/[/url]

Alex

[stingrayfan]

Yeah, if you get an enjoyment out of playing, that's all that counts. It doesn't matter if that's in your bedroom or on a stage. But it has to be said, you will have more fun playing live than you ever will have playing along to stuff at home. For me, it's always the thrill of playing with a live drummer - it just makes your playing feel "real". Also, playing with a band makes you realise about the power of playing less, rather than filling every silence. Hanging back and locking in with the drummer is a great feeling. You don't need to be particularly good to gig, either. So, don't get irate - get in a band! Look at sites [url="http://www.partysounds.co.uk"]Partysounds[/url] and [url="http://www.musofinder.co.uk"]Musofinder[/url] to find some like minded musos.

[ARGH]

ANYONE given the time and finances can purchase an uberinstrument and amplificaton,and then polish it and never really learn how to play it,or have it on show in the front room for all to see.

ANYONE can sit in their house or bedroom and write about it on this forum...take photos etc

I heard a band complain a month or two back along,that 20 gigs a year was 'To much'. Said band members would often sneer that I did covers/functions,and I wasnt a 'real' musician,because I was not in or doing 'original' music with a band.

I then pointed out then length of their set (40mins to 1 hr of metal) and then took the timeframe of their gigging schedule (1 gig every say 15-28 days depending on time and distance),the number of musical styles (1...being..well....Metal) and then (and please excuse me but it needed to be said) the standard of equipment used (OK OK OK,not everyone must have the latest greatest modern/vintage plank/noisebox in my eyes,but Ive worked HARD on/offstage to have what I have,and I dont get complaints from soundmen or band members so.....well we can leave that hot potato).


Onstage I will do between 5-7 styles of music
I will play 2-3 hrs a night
I will learn Basslines....no...scratch that...MUSIC from some of the greatest musicians the world has known in modern times.
I will travel,lug and chug,myself to many many a dive of a pub and give them a show,get up the next day and do it all again,after a days work.
I will read charts to stuff I dont know,usually off the cuff and can communicate that information to other 'musicians' onstage (usually keys) thus in theory no tune is a no go (yeah right..you want me to do Zappa.....I aint THAT good...yet).
I will sing (not just stand there like an open mouthed moron) and 'perform'.
I will communicate with the crowd,not just announce the next tune.....

Its not about the money,But ,and this is the cinch...I get paid......not a Kings ransom,but I get paid,and I like doing it,and it makes people and me happy,Im not sitting about bitching about the monitor mix (although I have I must admit on a few occasions) or compareing/Hating other local bands,Im generally far far FAR happier a person,than when I play,people can never walk away saying what I do or my standard of playing/singing/performance is SH1T.....And I dont spend all day kissing arse,begging for a tour support.



You can imagine the above was compressed into a conversation involving colourful words,but you get my point.

And to finish it off...just to irritate the 'gear' obsessed 'musicians' around me.......I listed my gear,and how much it was,and how I paid for it.....

[niceguyhomer]

I only play to gig, I love playing live and if I wasn't in a band I probably wouldn't pick up a bass or guitar again - that's my choice. I certainly wouldn't look down on anyone or make stupid comments to anyone who chose to do otherwise. It's your time and you fill it with whatever gives you pleasure and b*llocks to the brain-dead fungi who talk through their dirtboxes.

Edited September 25, 2007 by niceguyhomer

[Soulfinger]

[quote name='bass_in_ya_face' post='65178' date='Sep 25 2007, 09:50 AM']The most intelligent thing i've read on here.[/quote]

Oh yeah?

Didn´t like [i]my[/i] post then, ey?

I tell ya, if this kind of snobbery continues, I will stop contributing to this thread.

[stingrayfan]

[quote name='Soulfinger' post='65189' date='Sep 25 2007, 09:12 AM']Oh yeah?

Didn´t like [i]my[/i] post then, ey?

I tell ya, if this kind of snobbery continues, I will stop contributing to this thread.
[/quote]
That's the most intelligent thing I've read on here....

...oh, we've done that one...