How many have played in front of a live audience? Just wondering as we discuss music this is a big factor in many ways,......Some have part time, some everyday for a living, and yet some never at all,....the experience on stage is very reflective to responses and replies when you read them as the overall experiences we learn on stage is priceless and can never be passed on unless you actually have done it many many times in many many situations, what gear you use and why on stage makes a big difference also,...playing in your living room and playing in front of 50-100-1000's people with or with out a band is such a different ballgame,....you owe it to yourself to try it sometime any way you have to & you will certainly become a better musician for sure in so many ways, being Eye To Eye with hundreds of people watching you perform will be an experience you will never forget. ....

take care

and thoughts?

Played hundreds of super large concerts with big named groups and as opening act. Nightclubs Piano bars, dances and now a lot of seniors.
I love every one of the venues and have learned so much about presentation, grooming,stage presence and lots of things you would never
think of if you just play at home. One of the most important is always
have a backup for cords, tracks if you use them, mics. Never could afford
a backup keyboard but that would have been nice. But impractical at the
time. Hammond b3 twin leslies ect.
mel.....BY THE WAY YOU NEVER STOP LEARNING

Approaching 20,000 live jobs. Music, equipment and customers have changed dramatically.

The Adrenalin rush has not!

R.

mel,....certainly the show must go on,backup everything is never enough, kbs, wires & cables, and adapters of every kind, extra laptops, usb drives, mics, speakers, stands, mixers,and when all else fails be able to do your show using your smart phone also if needed,...lol...when the pressure is on to perform and you have paying crowds you better be ready to give them 150% every single time and be proud of it. What I am tryiong to get at is that we have two totally different experience factors here on SZ which is something to consider when "discussing music"...

Take care

90% of my jobs since 1958 were for played in front of a live audience. A few years with clubs then weddings, anniversaries, and parties.

My home playing was normally guitar. I tried my best to make my songs sound full like a piano.
John C.

There are also many great musicians who never played in front of an audience but their music has been heard by millions, they have been really successful in the back ground as studio musicians, arrangers, songwriters, producers, and on & on it goes,...

Most of my playing is a public performance, much like what others have said. Played this week for a large group of seniors. Got three requests, two of which I knew. I knew “Without A Song” and “Wandering Star”. Have heard, but didn’t know “Do Nothing Till You Hear From Me”. Promised to learn it. Another thought: how many musicians who play(ed) live were more or less in the background and not center stage? Did Freddie Green of the Basie band ever play a solo? But, yet, these folks are indispensable in terms of the group’s sound. A close friend, who directed a college jazz band for years, said that in building a band from scratch, his first choice would be the bass player, followed by the rhythm section. These would be selected before the lead trumpet player, who often gets the limelight, he said.

I tried when i wore a younger mans cloths, i joined a rockband... I find out making music on stage or playing for others made me so nervous that i needed a whole lot of beer and Bacardi to overcome that, or just fail miserably.. Untill the day of today i get nervous like a little boy when i want to even play some christmass songs for the kids at christmass eve..

Whats really strange, i have no problem talking in front of huge audiences, and i am talking about thousands of people, i even lead some funerals including my own daughters one. Witouth a single drop of sweat. But playing music in front of an audience somehow hits a nerve... i think it has to do with the fact that i fear/hate making mistakes, and know that i am not hundred procent in controll of my playing skills..

I even quit playing music for over a decade because of that.. when i picked it up again, i promissed myself to never play for an audience again, as it was not worth it for me.

In the 80s I played in bands that opened for major acts like INXS and Divinyls to up to 2000 people. But while that was fun playing to 10 people in a bar is just as satisfying. I guess I just like to play to live audiences.

Here is the song we used to open with for major acts.

50+ years of performing live in all types of settings. Some memorable and some not so much. I should write a book with the stories I've accumulated.
I'm still happy I never pursued it full time but got a teaching degree and now that the preforming end has slowed down for me I don't have the constant worry of getting the next gig.
Made some good fun money and bought and sold tons of equipment, met some good people and went places I never would of if it wasn't for the music. .
Playing live will teach you more and make you realize things that no amount of time in the practice room will.
I look back and do have some regrets but its been a hell-of-a ride.