That's when I usually introduce a Power Attenuator to folks for the solution.
Links to an article with some info about them. Pass it on. No excuses after that.
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That's when I usually introduce a Power Attenuator to folks for the solution.
Links to an article with some info about them. Pass it on. No excuses after that.
Young Musician:
"I can't hear myself very well, I'll turn up"
Old Musician:
"I can't hear myself very well, let's all turn down."
"I can't hear myself very well, I'll turn up"
Old Musician:
"I can't hear myself very well, let's all turn down."
Couldn't disagree more.
At home practice doesn't belong on this list. Musicians who don't practice regularly on their own probably won't be able to find/keep a gig, so forget them.
Your definition of rehearsal is what should properly be called "*band* practice," if you wanna get into semantics.
But regardless, unless you're talking about a "show band," rehearsal is a completely inappropriate term for what most musicians do to prepare. Would you ever say athletes "rehearse?" I bet not.
Actually, some athletes do rehearse. In football, they call it scrimmage games. When I sailed competitively, me crew and I would sail the course so we would know what to do during the actual race.
Did you actually look at a dictionary?
Practice: repeated exercise in or performance of an activity or skill so as to acquire or maintain proficiency in it.
Rehearse: practice (a play, piece of music, or other work) for later public performance.
And yes, practice does belong in the list. It is one of the things you do.
What you do at home is practice. You are working on proficiency on you instrument and learning your parts of the material you will be doing. When the band gets together, you are preparing for a later performance.
Call it what you will, it doesn't matter that much. I will admit that I will tell my wife I am heading out to "band practice".
Using the terms practice and rehearsal here is only to delineate the difference. But, it is curious that the vast majority here don't agree with you.
We do both.
But we also play a lot of shows so it's just for our own...whatever.
but sometimes we play pretty loud in rehearsal because it's fun.
and sometimes we play quietly in rehearsal because it's a different kind of fun. But also because it really helps everyone listen to each other better.
having said that, sometimes we play our songs really slow too for the same reason: you have to listen and react, you can't just go on autopilot.
We're only a 3 piece so volume is never really a problem and it's easy to get one guitar and one bass to turn down plus we have a very dynamic drummer.
in summary, I do think it's good to do both, play loud 'or practice as we play' and also play quietly, or 'not as you play' because with most venues, especially small and crappy ones, you never know what the stage sound is going to be like.
But we also play a lot of shows so it's just for our own...whatever.
but sometimes we play pretty loud in rehearsal because it's fun.
and sometimes we play quietly in rehearsal because it's a different kind of fun. But also because it really helps everyone listen to each other better.
having said that, sometimes we play our songs really slow too for the same reason: you have to listen and react, you can't just go on autopilot.
We're only a 3 piece so volume is never really a problem and it's easy to get one guitar and one bass to turn down plus we have a very dynamic drummer.
in summary, I do think it's good to do both, play loud 'or practice as we play' and also play quietly, or 'not as you play' because with most venues, especially small and crappy ones, you never know what the stage sound is going to be like.
buldog5151bass
Kibble, milkbones, and P Basses. And redheads.
Unless you are working on certain things, yes, practice like you play out. But that doesn't mean uber volume. Most bands gig too loud, most bands rehearse too loud.
the word you are looking for is loudly. It's the opposite of quietly, another adverb. Otherwise dead set. Bands' gigs are too loud and their rehearsals are too loud too.
This is subjective. People thought The Who were too loud back in their day. What is "too loud" changes with the times, and the context of the gig. I'm not a human MP3 player to play background music for venue. At the shows I play, people are there to see the bands. We are the attraction, not the venue. Therefore, as long as it isn't too loud for the people that paid money to see us, we aren't too loud.
Shows are one thing but the way live bands struggle to get bar gigs these days is obvious to all. To a large extent I believe that is down to the bar crowd wanting a more convivial atmosphere than raucous bands.
I know. But I truly believe the show thing would have much wider appeal if only they would turn it all down a bit, as in enough that you didn't have to scream your bar orders.
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I'm a fan of practicing under the worst possible conditions. Gets a band working harder, and gets them used to stages where the sound isn't optimal (uh... like all of them). It also adds to the excitement when the volume is cranked and things are sounding much better than they did at rehearsal. Sucks when you sound worse at the gig.
For some genres, it actually loses appeal if it's not incredibly loud.
^This
@Downunderwonder There is a reason Matt Pike of Sleep shows up with 6 cabs and 3 heads. People expect expect the thunder. They want the air to punch them. You don't go to a Sleep show and talk. Get lit maybe, but not talk. When people come to my band's shows, it is no mercy. If don't like loud, you will hate us at any volume. Smart people order their beer before the band plays, otherwise they can't watch the performance.
I get that cover bands live in a different universe. They are a service provider. Plus, by and large, they play simple music that doesn't require much volume. If there was a death\grind or stoner cover band, it might be different.
We used to have a live music pub with a proper stage. They let the bands have at it with their over capable PA. One night I watched a fine band of original rowdies draw in crowds with their excellent racket but they only managed to quarter fill the place, if that, because everyone left after one drink. They could hear good live original metal from outside and ventured in but driven away by the earsplitting noise. That's what I am talking about. Keeping it real for the bar.
The super loud you are talking about does not go over well in the wider commercial bar market where most of us play. Many bands are way too loud.
the problem is too many bands with too much volume for general consumption. I don't care if it's covers or original, too loud is too loud.
