Practice times?

mndean · #1 07-01-2009, 10:36 PM

You have had practice sessions. Is it unusual to go for an hour and a half without a break in a practice? The entire practice was 2-1/2 hours. My real gripe is that there wasn't a place for me to sit down. I stood the whole practice session until the last song when I finally got a bench to sit on. We're supposed to play our gig on Saturday, so I'm not uncomfortable with spending the time, it's just too concentrated and I don't get much chance to fool around with the bass lines to improve what I have. I'm beat and weary, have to go to work, then go to practice and we do each song once, twice at the most. And the set ballooned from 7 songs to 15, so I expect an even longer practice tomorrow. I haven't practiced like this in 25 years. Back then we worked on one song until we had it down. It might take time, but the band would work on bits and pieces until it gelled into something we were all happy with.

upandb · #2 07-01-2009, 10:46 PM

honestly, i usually do an hour and a half without a break every time I practice with my band. At worst, I just sit on my amp, or someone else's amp

But if everyone has huge amps that won't always work. I have a light bass though, but still, standing up the whole time will make you get better at it. It'll feel A LOT easier during your shows if you stand up during practice, right?

Plus I wear my bass lower than it would be if i sat down, so sitting down throws me off.

Renaissance · #3 07-01-2009, 10:59 PM

We routinely run over an hour and a half at rehearsal - take a chair.

shawshank72 · #4 07-01-2009, 11:06 PM

Usually play 2 hours straight then we take a smoke break and just go over what needs to be ironed out. Believe me i was in your shoes once, but once i got used to it, i became a better player from it.

Jazzdogg · #5 07-01-2009, 11:13 PM

I guess it's all a matter of what you're used to, and what your expectations are. When my expectations aren't being met, I've gotta ask how well I've communicated them before I look to others for solutions.

I've always called "practice" the time each of us spends improving individually; "rehearsal" is the time we spend working together as a band. I've seldom seen an effective rehearsal that wasn't preceeded by individual practice. When band rehearsals aren't bearing fruit, it usually means the band members haven't agreed on concrete goals, aren't communicating effectively, or individuals aren't being diligent in their practice.

Do you stand or sit during your gigs? When I want to sit during rehearsals (or at a gig), I bring a stool.

mndean · #6 07-01-2009, 11:31 PM

Thanks, I'm getting the idea. The thing that makes me mad is I'm the only one who has to stand. I can't sit on my amp since the bandleader used it as a place to put a fan (no A/C) in a practice room the size of a jail cell (it's 10'x10', a cell might be bigger), and everyone else has a chair. It's true though that I prefer playing while standing and it throws me off not to stand. Maybe I just need better shoes. With everyone else sitting during practice, I might be the only one left standing at the end of this. A 15-song set for a block party seems a bit much. The bandleader may have a cunning idea of getting people to pay us to stop playing. I guess I'll get used to standing after a few more practices. I've only had four with this group in the past week and a half and we play Saturday. If I can get by (and old band member clued me in that the practice may not mean much when we play the gig, the bandleader tends not to be too reliable remembering his own songs). I have charts now and if he don't follow 'em I'm not worried anymore. It's his problem if he loses his way. I'll try to rerail him if I can, but I'm the new guy, and I'll have enough on my hands.

mndean · #7 07-01-2009, 11:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jazzdogg

I guess it's all a matter of what you're used to, and what your expectations are. When my expectations aren't being met, I've gotta ask how well I've communicated them before I look to others for solutions.

I've always called "practice" the time each of us spends improving individually; "rehearsal" is the time we spend working together as a band. I've seldom seen an effective rehearsal that wasn't preceeded by individual practice. When band rehearsals aren't bearing fruit, it usually means the band members haven't agreed on concrete goals, aren't communicating effectively, or individuals aren't being diligent in their practice.

Do you stand or sit during your gigs? When I want to sit during rehearsals (or at a gig), I bring a stool.

When I last played a gig (in an ancient time before there were even hair bands), I stood of course. I was 21, it was easy.

These are rehearsals by your terminology. The problem is practice time is difficult to come by so the bandleader blends the two together. I keep patching his mistakes or he patches mine. It shouldn't be quite like that. Not with the whole group there. I also have a problem with the sax player blowing fills practically into my ear throwing me off (we have no drummer). I told the bandleader to put him on the other end so he won't distract me.

Stumbo · #8 07-02-2009, 12:04 AM

Sit on your amp before the fan goes on it. Put the fan on top of another amp since they're using chairs. Or bring your own chair. Rehearsal should be fun and not such a chore.

Maybe record the rehearsals so you can work on the bass lines on your own.

If the singer is that sloppy about the arrangements, I suggest you write the charts for the songs so that everyone can have a copy. Or make copies of the recordings and pass them out once you agree that a specific recording is the "final" take of the song. Everyone will be able to practice with the recordings on their own and the gigs will go that much smoother.

How about a more comfortable strap? Here are a few links you may want to check out:

1 Comfortable strap
2
3

phatbass · #9 07-02-2009, 12:12 AM

Wear comfortable shoes.

I'm serious; I normally wear sneakers/runners/trainers/whatever they call 'em in your neck of the woods, but at formal gigs where I have to wear dress shoes, my feet are lettin' me know by the end of the gig.

mndean · #10 07-02-2009, 10:03 AM

Comfortable strap? I have a Fretsling and it's very comfortable. My shoulder never hurts from this. The sneakers are a good idea, and I have a good pair to wear today. I didn't wear dress shoes yesterday, but loafers that were old (sometimes I go straight from work to the rehearsal). Oh, and the fan has been planted on my amp since the day I brought it to the bandleader's house (he's great about things like that. He borrowed a suit from me months ago that I still can't get back from him. I wouldn't mind, but it's a damn Armani. I can't be handing out my Armani suits like they were from the Men's Wearhouse.). I'm gonna put that fan elsewhere today.

Godbody · #11 07-02-2009, 10:33 AM

In an originals band, if I'm passionate about what I'm playing, sometimes we've gone three hours straight. (I dunno how the drummer could stand it!) We usually break for food and the john, but otherwise its not altogether uncommon to put in a 12 hour day, since weekly practice rarely works out. By the end of the day, I've played most of the songs four times or more, and there are zero questions about structure. Sure, singing voices get strained, but it still nothing like what it would be like if we somehow managed to do a tour.

Physical comforts are always very much secondary. If I'm playing covers, I'm usually sitting down by the second song in practice. I'm just not motivated to stand.

DeluxeRed · #12 07-02-2009, 10:47 AM

Your rehearsal-set time should be at least as long as your performance-set time, and 1.5x isn't a bad idea, either. A fan? Are you gonna have a fan on stage? You want it hot, you want it to hurt. If you're gonna stand for your set, stand for your rehearsal--DON'T get used to playing sitting down! If you're gonna wear Chucks or dress shoes on stage, don't wear Air Walks in rehearsal. You want the performance gig to seem EASY compared to rehearsal. And between uncarpeted stages and hot hot hot lights, most performances are not very comfortable. Man up and be tougher than the gig.

duff beer · #13 07-02-2009, 11:02 AM

Honestly, if you can't stand for 90 minutes then you either need new shoes or you need to get in shape.

mjolnir · #14 07-02-2009, 11:08 AM

2 to 2 and a half hours is pretty much normal for us with no breaks or places to sit.

mndean · #15 07-02-2009, 01:39 PM

First of all, where we live it's hot, but dry and the gig is outdoors. No problems there. It'll be in the 90s and starts around 5pm. Conversely, our rehearsal space is an unairconditioned sweatbox with many electrical items running at once. Without a fan, it'd be 120 degrees in the room. It's still hotter than hell and we don't stop even for water between songs. One of our band members is 12, and she complains the most. I will admit to being out of shape and I'm not young anymore, either. I grant that, even if I do walk a few miles twice a day, every day.

And since reading comprehension seems to be a problem for some, let me reassert, I am the only one who has to stand during the entire rehearsal. The rest of the band gets to sit on their dead asses, the sax player only standing when he's got something to play. It seems their conditioning isn't a problem, only mine.

You can be "into your music", but this ain't my music at all (I wrote none of it, have no say in it other than whatever bass line I can cobble together out of the chords, and still have to learn three more songs before Saturday), yet I have to play every song, even if I hate some with a passion (there are some really long and dull "story-songs" that just kind of lay there). When the set was 7 songs, it was no problem to tighten them up and get everything in order, but adding 8 more five days before the gig is a bit much.

mjolnir · #16 07-02-2009, 01:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mndean

First of all, where we live it's hot, but dry and the gig is outdoors. No problems there. It'll be in the 90s and starts around 5pm. Conversely, our rehearsal space is an unairconditioned sweatbox with many electrical items running at once. Without a fan, it'd be 120 degrees in the room. It's still hotter than hell and we don't stop even for water between songs. One of our band members is 12, and she complains the most. I will admit to being out of shape and I'm not young anymore, either. I grant that, even if I do walk a few miles twice a day, every day.

And since reading comprehension seems to be a problem for some, let me reassert, I am the only one who has to stand during the entire rehearsal. The rest of the band gets to sit on their dead asses, the sax player only standing when he's got something to play. It seems their conditioning isn't a problem, only mine.

You can be "into your music", but this ain't my music at all (I wrote none of it, have no say in it other than whatever bass line I can cobble together out of the chords, and still have to learn three more songs before Saturday), yet I have to play every song, even if I hate some with a passion (there are some really long and dull "story-songs" that just kind of lay there). When the set was 7 songs, it was no problem to tighten them up and get everything in order, but adding 8 more five days before the gig is a bit much.

...It sounds like your practice time issues are the least of your problems.

Seriously, cut and run.

BassScum · #17 07-02-2009, 01:52 PM

If it's practice bring your own chair or stool to sit on. Why is that so difficult? And more important then anything is to stay in shape. I have no sympathy for someone who complains about be tired from standing for a period of time when they are physically out of shape. Start an exercise program.

Renaissance · #18 07-02-2009, 02:19 PM

OK, this has taken a turn for the weird or I'm missing something. Who is making you stand the whole time - the band leader who won't give you your suit back or the whiney little 12 year old girl? Why can't you take the fan off of your amp and sit on your amp? Or maybe you can sit on someone else's amp. Maybe you can take a chair or stool. Maybe you can trade the little girl some candy for her seat. Dude, I'm sorry but grow a pair!

All IMHO of course...

mndean · #19 07-02-2009, 08:06 PM

Both of them. There ain't no more chairs in the house (except a sofa that won't fit in the room - the sax player sits there until there's a song where he's got parts. I got a chair today, though. How?

Story of rehearsal today: The girl (who's got reason to whine, I might add. She's pretty much lost interest in the music we're playing) didn't show, she gets passed from parent to parent so sometimes she can't get to rehearsal. We quit early (2.5 hours) because the bandleader's hands hurt too much for him to play any more

Now I don't feel so bad about standing. I admit I might have made a voodoo doll of the bandleader and stuck pins in the hands, but we all know that unscientific stuff never works.

the yeti · #20 07-02-2009, 08:16 PM

3 hour rehearsals with a break in the middle are pretty normal for me.

as for fooling around with the bass lines it's expected that i'll take care of that somewhere else or else on the fly. that may not be the situation you're in but since you're asking about rehearsal i thought i'd throw that out. if it's a new situation for you maybe you should ask your bandmates.