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Music Stands on Stage??

#101
MNAirHead said:
For 90% of us on the boards.. it's communication and visual first.. a few flubs are better than a distraction.
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For 99% of the folks they wouldn't notice.. like a big black stand and some sheets falling all over.

LARGE print on the floor is cool.. stuff in a drawer is cool.

Stuff in between the communcation and the payers (customers) is an obstruction.

Once you do not have to worry about filling a house you can be as quirky as Michael Stipe or Bono and get away with whatever you want...
 
#104
Smallmouth_Bass said:
Interesting, because I've seen this sentiment several times through this thread. How then, do you guys feel about bassists and guitarist that have their eyes glued to the fingerboards?

For me, I would prefer to hear the music played well. But, I have seen a few bands playing stuff that is not too difficult - and having played it lots of times - that it bothered me that they had to have the eyes on the board at all times.
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I make it a point to learn everything eyes-off. For me, that was necessary when I learned to sing. Basically, I've got to do one thing or the other more-or-less automatically, & for me it's easiest to do it with my bass lines, at least to start with.

Even when I'm not singing, though, I force myself to not "cheat" by watching my hand(s). For me, it's just an enforced self-discipline that I think I need. I learn everything that way.

JM
 
#105
When I was gigging regularly with a band I memorized everything and if needed I would use cheat sheets with my set list. Now that I only play twice a month and new songs each time I just play off the sheets. Its different though because I am church so having the stands is okay because I am not there to perform but to lead music. Performance time though, no stands.

Todd :)
 
#106
I suppose circumstance typically plays into whether stands are acceptable. Horn players (mentioned a few times here) are an exception because any horn player I've ever encountered is a mercenary - they are paid to jump in with minimal practice. Steely Dan could play with music stands and a teleprompter in tutus - b/c they're Steely Dan.

I find that music stands are a huge distraction on stage - they not only make a band look unprepared or unrehearsed, but they also typically tend to lead said player to have a disconnect with what's going on in the crowd and on the stage. Reading and playing requires focus that should be on the performance.

My last (cover) band's singer (a very attractive young woman with an amazing voice) could not seem to get all the lyrics into her head and perform on stage. If she still managed to miss a line (wait - she has a lyric stand!) she would often trip up and be lost for half a verse. Very distracting to the rest of the band.

And on a professional level? I can recall an instance when we were playing an open mic at a hotspot in which paid gigs would result if we kicked @$$. The manager loved the band, the song selection, our live sound... the end result? "I would love to book you, but your singer uses a music stand. What's up with that?"

He wasn't a young punk - he was an experienced owner of a very popular establishment who had been booking bands for years - he knew what he needed to see - and a stand wasn't it. I did my best to sell around it, even guaranteed that there wouldn't be one next around... but that first expression was everything. Never booked a show there. And I tried!

In the end, like everything else, it is a subjective thing. It's what you can accept in your band. But on a professional level when you aren't a major label act who can do what you want b/c you've got the sales and clicks to back it?

No way.
 
#107
gus1894 said:
And on a professional level? I can recall an instance when we were playing an open mic at a hotspot in which paid gigs would result if we kicked @$$. The manager loved the band, the song selection, our live sound... the end result? "I would love to book you, but your singer uses a music stand. What's up with that?"
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Wait ... you were playing for free and this guy was critical of a music stand? You believed him? He never had any intention of booking you ... unless you played for free again. And you still wanted to play there?
 
#108
RustyAxe said:
Wait ... you were playing for free and this guy was critical of a music stand? You believed him? He never had any intention of booking you ... unless you played for free again. And you still wanted to play there?
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loved the band,loved the song selection,the live sound but wouldn't hire because of a music stand............puleeze.....sometimes ya gotta listen to the bs detector....
 
#109
It's situation-specific. Jazz, OK. Classical, OK. Horn players, OK. Lead singer in a rock band, not OK. Why? Because that singer is supposed to be looking at the audience nearly always- that's the way it is. And as previously mentioned there is the illusion of spontaneity. Plus, a music stand makes you look like you care, and in rock, caring is un-cool.
 
#110
dmusic148 said:
It's situation-specific. Jazz, OK. Classical, OK. Horn players, OK. Lead singer in a rock band, not OK. Why? Because that singer is supposed to be looking at the audience nearly always- that's the way it is. And as previously mentioned there is the illusion of spontaneity. Plus, a music stand makes you look like you care, and in rock, caring is un-cool.
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Yea, this does it for me. Add to that, the complexity of Jazz or Classical compared to most Rock songs.
 
#112
dmusic148 said:
It's situation-specific. Jazz, OK. Classical, OK. Horn players, OK. Lead singer in a rock band, not OK. Why? Because that singer is supposed to be looking at the audience nearly always- that's the way it is. And as previously mentioned there is the illusion of spontaneity. Plus, a music stand makes you look like you care, and in rock, caring is un-cool.
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:D Yeah, and when the crooning SOB forgets the arrangement, adds a verse, forgets his lyrics, or otherwise screws up the rest of us can forget about using our charts anyway ... we're all on unexplored turf at that point ... :p
 
#113
RustyAxe/Jim Campbell. Really? We're on a thread regarding lyric stands and automatically you decide to go into attack mode b/c I related an experience? So you've been in every situation imaginable and you figure it couldn't have occurred? I stand corrected, you were there. I don't know what I'm talking about. Have a nice day.
Why bother coming on to a forum to trash talk other people? Why do I bother.
 
#114
our church band uses them. no one really comments down about them, but no one really cares. overall we dont have the availability of pre-practicing before hand, and even if we did, its all pretty simple if u already know the song.

but if someone were using them anywhere else but classical, id find that kinda strange
 
#115
DoggBisket said:
What is your feeling about bands that have a music stand, or stands on stage? Personally I think it borders on douchebaggery. The only exception being a jazz trio or something along that line. But for any other genre, get the music stand off the stage!. A cheat sheet on the floor, or someplace inconspicuous OK, but music stand? No.
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We used 'em...but I hated it. I'd rather set up some sort of inconspicious tele-prompter using a laptop--IF you need that type of support and can't play from memory. Like I said, we've used them on stage but I hate it.
 
#117
I'm 57,sing Lead in over 50 songs.I use a 8" x 10" plastic deal clipped to my mic stand for my cheat sheets of the lyric's. I have 15-20 songs that I like to have the words to more as a safety net.If you can sing over 50 songs without any words then you're a much bigger man than me.If you play in a cover band playing the same songs every week and need tabs,you need to practice more.
 
#118
In my experiences, I played tuba in a wind ensemble, brass quintets, jazz bass in trios, combos, and full 21-piece jazz ensembles, and a couple of rock bands and now my current project.

With the exception of the last two, I always played with a music stand - even for my solo tuba recital;)

Sometimes using a stand can be a distraction especially if you have many charts, lyrics, or whatever and then they start falling all over the place - thats not cool and screams unprofessional:scowl:
 
#119
I'm in a coverband that only plays once a month. We rotate out songs and add new ones in all the time. I sing lead and play bass and there's no way I'm going to remember the lyrics to all the songs.

So I built this; (It was posted on Make)

http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2008/11/lyrics_box_for_practicegi.html

Not shown is a shroud that goes around the front and sides. Similar to the sun shades that go around tv/video camera monitors.

No on knows that it's my magic box unless they come up on stage. It looks like a stage monitor from the front.
 
#120
gus1894 said:
RustyAxe/Jim Campbell. Really? We're on a thread regarding lyric stands and automatically you decide to go into attack mode b/c I related an experience? So you've been in every situation imaginable and you figure it couldn't have occurred? I stand corrected, you were there. I don't know what I'm talking about. Have a nice day.
Why bother coming on to a forum to trash talk other people? Why do I bother.
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Sorry you took offense. None was intended. I didn't say it didn't happen, I just said he was using a flimsy excuse not to book you, and that he likely had no intention to in the first place ... You have a nice day, too.
 

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