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Don't just stand there!
- Thread starter Axtman
- Start date
I did not express myself properly. What i was trying to say was:
Of course, it's like food: the eye eats too (german expression), or language: what you say is almost as important as how you say it.
What i meant was: It's all about the music, because:
- Presence on stage is just cosmetics. It can make the show better, but not if the music or sound is bad. I am always aware about the audience when i compose. But afterwards, on stage, the music's gotta do the job. Of course i don't stand there like a mummy.
- I think the whole appearance of the band has gotta be coherent, it should fit the energy (or wathever) it is trying to communicate. I care about how i move, what i wear outta respect of the audience, because, yes they paid to hear AND watch a band. But anyway:
- During a gig, i would hear or see, or feel the audience's reactions (to a part they like). All the non-verbal stuff, as you say. The vibe, energy, feeling that's being transmitted BY the music. How i look, interact, move: that's more for everyday life…
For me, the song has to do that, not my body language…
Then a beautiful sexy chick who dances & sings, but sucks the hell out of your ears.
Don't you agree we have too much of the second? Didn't the "overall look" weight too much in general music for very long time already?
N.B.: I often look extremely stupid (grimacing) while trying to groove.
What the heck, as long as it helps!
I have been told that I have a problem. I just stand still while playing and I scowl my face. Hey I am having fun but I guess just not showing it. Others in the band want me to move more. I always feel a little self-conscious when I do move around.
Any ideas on how I can improve my stage performance?
Oh, and the leader always turns around and gives me an exaggerated smile to convey that I need to smile. Well I am concentrating!
Step 1) Know your parts
Step 2) Remind yourself before each show that it's FUN to play in front of people
Step 3) Have fun and honestly enjoy what you are doing and the rest will take care of itself.
Sub-step 1) Look up. Force yourself to look up and look at people. You don't have to stare lovingly into their eyes or anything, but look up. Smiling doesn't hurt, either. If your band isn't a 'smile-centric' band, then don't - but look up.
Sub-step 2) Do not stand still. This does not mean you have to leap around or dance - simply bobbing or swaying will do - but DO NOT stand still.
Sub-step 3) HAVE FUN - ENJOY YOURSELF.
Honestly - if you are NOT enjoying what you are doing and playing in front of people is so traumatic that you have to turtle you should probably rethink a gig that requires you perform in front of people.
People respond to confidence. If you look like you know what you are doing and aren't afraid to show your face, people will see you as confident and get a good vibe from that. So know your parts inside and out, remember that being a rock star is about one of the coolest, funnest things you can be and show it!
No, I do not agree. The product that the music industry delivers is based on what people (a large proportion of them, at least) want. Any individual such as your or me may want something else. That's irrelevant to anybody who's in music as a business.
You seem to think that it has to be an either/or choice. It's not. Imagine a beautiful, sexy chick who dances, sings, & really rocks. A musical performance involves a lot more than just music. Ignore any part of it at your own peril.
What I really think there is too much of, is people that seem to think that they only need to be concerned with a small subset of the overall package, whether that be music, looks, moves, or whatever.
I tried to express my thoughts in a finely-shaded way. Sorry if you understood it as an "either/or".
I'm not in music as a business, so that's probably the biggest disagreement in the way we both see things.
"Ignore any part [other than just music] of it at your own peril."
Thanks for the lesson. I leave that to others. Poor me.
"The product that the music industry delivers is based on what people (a large proportion of them, at least) want."
That somehow reminds my of McDonalds, MTV, SUVs… sounds great! I'm not into that.
I agree. The music industry is not really relevant - it comes down to human interaction and how body language is, whether we know it or not, a critical factor in how people 'feel' about other people.
If you walk into an elevator and there's only one other person on there and he's staring at his feet and standing in the corner, you'll feel like this guy would rather be all alone and you might even feel a little uncomfortable.
But if he looks right at you and smiles when you get on, you'll feel significantly differently. He doesn't have to talk, but simply presenting himself in a 'positive' manor changes the vibe.
Applied to the stage - if a band is on the stage staring at their shoes and using body language that says "I'd rather you not look at me and just listen to what I'm playing, please..." - you pretty much divide your audience in two right off the bat. Those who already get your type of music and those who don't.
If, however the entire band 'engages' the crowd by simply looking confident - presenting their faces and not looking shy or intimidated, you stand a much better chance at bringing those people who may not already 'get' your thing on board.
Body language matters. If you must interact with people, how you present yourself does matter. Yes, you can ignore that and yes some people will be fine with that, but on the whole, it matters.
If you want to maximize your potential, be confident and show it. You don't have to arrogant or showy. Just confident.
While I agree with your concept, I am not so sure that's what they're measuring with those caps. Aren't they measuring the electrical activity of the brain itself? I am not in the field, but every neuroscience show I've watched uses those sensors to measure the synapses firing - indicating which areas of the brain are activated by specific stimuli...
I see your pseudo-neurological solutions and raise you one Cesar Millan! It's vibes, dude. The energy you project. People respond positively to confident and assertive energy. A good leader is calm and assertive - and confident.
The best way to project confidence is to be confident. The best way to be confident is to be competent. The best way to be competent is to practice and know your part inside and out. If you practice, know your part inside and out and are conscious that your demeanor on stage matters, you will be able to project confident and assertive energy and people will react positively.
If you are faking it - people will know. If you don't know what you're doing and trying to cover it up with facial expressions or dance moves, people will know. The only way to be confident and assertive is to know your stuff.
If you can only do one or the other, I agree. However, the OP wants tips on how to do both.
I asked Gene to clarify that on his website a while back, and he said that he meant that they weren't "Malmsteen-esque" musicians, but he said that they obviously are musicians and that they DO enjoy making music, but virtuosity doesn't interest them.
Go figure. The guy knows plenty of theory, he throws it out there all the time. And I wouldn't exactly call the members of KISS musically illiterate.
When you can write songs like these, you must have some kind of musical capability.
Anyway, for people to sit and tell you that you're musically illiterate for listening to KISS music is as rediculous as saying THEY'RE musically illiterate.
PS, I know you didn't mean anything in particular.
I'll say this about Gene Simmons: while watching his reality show, i saw him come into a room where his daughter was playing piano, and not only did he recognize the chord she was playing in, but that it was an inversion! I'm lucky if I can tell major from minor! ok, not really, but that was still pretty damn impressive!
I have taken on the crazy monkey persona for my band. My singer and rhythm guitarists are both in the move around a little bit category and my lead guitard dosen't hardly move at all. So, being that I'm good but probably the least talented of the group, I decided to make up for it by making an "ass" out of myself on stage. I jump around, head bang (good old school, long haired banging), make faces (that being said, I also NEVER drink before we take the stage, seen people fall over and break stuff). I'm also wireless so I make random trips all over the bar and thrash with audience. There are a lot of great bands that I can't remember right now because they weren't exciting to watch but there are a ton of OK bands that I remember because they were exciting (I've seen Rob Zombie 5 times and musically he sucks live but he is a showman so I always love going to his shows and I will continue to pay to see him). I have been told that our music is great but the one thing that people remember the most is my crazy ass.
I've said that for years.
IMHO, The Rolling Stones are a better example. Flame away
No more than any other time in radio history. If anything, musicianship is better now, overall.
ive heard people say if you want to stand, just join a jazz band. and in some ways, thats true. i love some jazz, everything from really slow mellow, to upbeat and complicated songs, and i always find that most of the time, people who listen to jazz are more "mature" about what they are listening to. they go for the music. they really appreciate what you are playing, and how complicated it is to learn and play, they will watch your hands, and listen. you dont have to jump around to get their attention, they will watch you solely based on the tunes your playin.
To extend that - in playing jazz, musicians are frequently moved by the music and that manifests itself in them physically moving too. Not every musician reacts to the energy of the music in an outwardly physical fashion, but those who do, do - and when they do, it adds to the show that people are not only listening to, but watching. It adds another hook that helps the audience connect with the music.
If a jazzer feels he has to move in spite of how he feels about the music, however, that would look contrived and detract from the overall impact of the performance. It would not be honest or come from a genuine place and the vibe it creates would be awkward.
People are visual creatures. Music is an audio experience alone, but music performed live by a band includes watching the band.
People at a classical concert watch the conductor - who is quite animated. They enjoy the music and will watch the rather still musicians as they perform it, but the visual impact of the 6th chair, 2nd violinists subtle swaying would be minimal. They'll look to the conductor for a representation of the visual energy of the music.
The same, if not more so, holds true for jazz and pop/rock bands. Reduce the number of people making the music and the responsibility to represent visually the energy of the music falls on the players. True, they don't have to be visually appealing, but if they are, and it's honest, it enhances the experience.
I got the same criticism, way back when, and I responded my making myself into a "character" who NEVER moved. Dark glasses helped-- I could keep my eyes closed and block everything out except the music. My hero was Mario Cippolina of Huey Lewis and the News.
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...&start=20&hl=en&sa=N&gbv=2&ndsp=20&tbs=isch:1
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...&start=20&hl=en&sa=N&gbv=2&ndsp=20&tbs=isch:1
I should have prefaced my earlier post by saying that I play heavy rock/light metal. When I was in my high school jazz band way back when I didn't thrash around, it didn't fit the music. It does completely rely on what you are playing. It also relies on where you're playing. Professional setting (ie black tie, cooperate, weddings, etc..) are not the places to thrash, you are secondary when you're playing these venues; a bar or other venue where you're playing all original music then by all means, let loose.
While you've opted not to include moving as a part of your show, you did incorporate a visual component into your performance. It doesn't always have to be motion that does it - but there's a clear difference between hiding by the drum riser, looking uptight and presenting yourself as a person who appears to be intimidated by being on stage.
Characterizing how you physically experience your music by the genre misses the point, IMO.
Music is meant to move you. Whether it's the gentle swaying of a concert violinist or the manic thrashing of a punk bassist, how you move is not driven by the genre, it's driven by your interaction with the music.
Saying "this genre requires motion, that requires stillness" is misleading and causes one to feel they need some sort of list of what kind of motion should or should not be done when playing this or that and over complicates the whole thing.
Bottom line - if you are confident, know your parts and are truly experiencing the music in the moment, your movements will organically reflect that. Putting too much thought into how you move for this or that adds a thought process that's counter intuitive to playing and performing the music honestly and effectively.
If you are preoccupied by 'how to move', you're more than likely missing the point altogether.
There are a series of videos on youtube from expert village that are designed to help with stage prescence. Check them out...
