I hope that those of you who read this, if you are a performer, do not take umbrage at my words or attitude. This is indeed directed at one specific musical group, which shall remain nameless as it is not my intent to slam them, but rather to vent a little bit about how I view the habits they have been developing.
Be on time!! It may indeed be the habit of musicians to be late for their set, after all, you said that musicians are always late. *ponders* But I must point out that of all the musical groups I have seen perform at faire, you are the only ones who actually begin every set late. Even when there was no act on stage prior to your set, you are late, and your explanation is that it is because musicians are always late. I can't accept that. Not from a supposedly "Professional" group. If you have so little respect for your audience, and fans, that you can show up whenever you darn well please, then I ask that you be understanding of your fans when they begin to leave you and admire other groups who actually display a bit of respect for their fans and audience members.
Don't ask if there are any requests and then not play any of the songs requested. I am amazed that I even have to complain about this. Again it was a highly visible display of how much respect you have for the audience. If you have a specific series already planned then don't ask if there are any requests, unless you intend to honor the request(s) and deviate from your planned set.
Hide the sound board BACKSTAGE! This is another issue I am actually surprised to have to mention. I must also say I am astounded the the promoter of the event permitted that board to even be out front in the middle of everything. You are supposedly portraying a group in a period where no such things existed, and if they are camouflaged well, or hidden backstage, the use of amplification can be understood (to some degree anyway). BUT when you have the mixer sitting in the middle of the crowd, it's kind of difficult to maintain even the illusion of being *in period*. If your sound man isn't good enough to be able to work backstage with a headset to get your mix of sound right, then hire a new guy, cuz the one you have is doing a poor job. It's a simple matter to adjust the mix and then stroll out front to monitor it as needed.
Those are the key issues that I have seen from this group. One last issue I'd like to make note of, which also applies to the group in question here, but is directed at any group who needs to utilize sound reinforcement equipment. The most frequent problem I see performers have is becoming dependant on the microphones and other electronic gear. In the process of learning to use the equipment many of them lose the ability to maintain a balanced group sound without the equipment. In the majority of cases the groups also eventually get past that problem and regain their *showmanship* qualities. Do yourselves a favor, work that out BEFORE you go live on stage with the electronics. It'll give you That much more confidence in your performance ability AND it'll ensure that in case of the gear failing, you can still put on a quality performance.
|