I attended the band scramble at the Great 48 jam, and it was very interesting to see a series of ad hoc bands consisting of members with wildly varying amounts of skill and experience, doing a performance on a real stage. I’m sure the performers’ own assessments of their show was wildly varied too. I bet some players who were pretty confident initially were left a little shaken, and others who expected to flop surprised themselves with their aplomb.
The fact is, it is hard to master all the things that go into a compelling performance.
There’s the playing of course. You have to be able to play a song all the way through, obviously. And ideally, get all the way through it with as few discernible mistakes as possible. Hardest thing of all, your rendition has to be interesting somehow. Everyone expects the folks on stage to know how to play their instruments – so how is your perfect (or nearly perfect) version worth listening to?
Then, there’s the stagecraft aspect. A stage is a crowded place, with a million things to bump into (other musicians, mic stands) and trip over (other musicians, monitors, cords). And there’s the darn mics – which I could tell surprised a lot of people in the band scramble.
We know what the mics are for, of course – they amplify our instruments and voices so the audience can hear. But to get a good, consistent quality sound, one must position their instrument in the precise spot, and only move it when you want to alter the sound. Let this slip your mind for a second, and you’re a bull in a china shop, bumping into the mics, or getting too close and causing feedback loops – all of which make your performance much less interesting.
Then there’s the ensemble aspect. I’m sure many folks who play really well by themselves are shocked to find it difficult to play along with others – there’s a lot more listening involved than one might expect. Similarly, many musicians who are veteran jammers find it a challenge to tighten up for a brief set onstage. Everything’s condensed! Whereas in the jam, you’re hitting your best solo the third time around the circle, onstage you get one shot, and you may have the “wait, I know I could do this better!” blues.
Experience and quality practice helps all of these things of course. I hope any of the musicians who found the band scramble daunting will continue to seek out more chances to play onstage, if that is their desire. Bit by bit, all the pieces come together, and eventually, everyone knows their parts and can deliver them effectively through the mics without wreaking havoc on the stage. And they will be very interesting and very entertaining, and they will have a lot of fun!
Knowing firsthand how difficult it is to perform well on stage also makes us appreciate the professionals who make it look so easy. Although I have seen professionals trip over stuff onstage…
