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Old 10-10-2015, 08:31 AM
jim_martin jim_martin is offline
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Default Playing an Acoustic Gig with a cold

Hey Guys,
Playing an acoustic duo gig tonight and I sing half of the songs, and my voice is not up to par.
Any do's/don'ts/tips to try and make it thru the gig?
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Old 10-10-2015, 09:45 AM
RRuskin RRuskin is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jim_martin View Post
Hey Guys,
Playing an acoustic duo gig tonight and I sing half of the songs, and my voice is not up to par.
Any do's/don'ts/tips to try and make it thru the gig?
Tune the guitar down 1/2-1 step to make it easier for your voice. Not ideal but better than missing the upper notes in your range.
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Old 10-10-2015, 09:52 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jim_martin View Post
Hey Guys,
Playing an acoustic duo gig tonight and I sing half of the songs, and my voice is not up to par.
Any do's/don'ts/tips to try and make it thru the gig?
Hi j_m…

First of all, Hello and Welcome to the forum! Glad you joined and jumped in with a thread.

I've played/sung many a gig with a cold.

I've transposed songs, turned up the mic and backed off on the voice, sipped coffee all the way through the gig and turned my head to cough (and kept kleenex handy) to fulfill a commitment.

I've even brought in a ringer singer to carry the melody and became a player for the night once.

And for me it wasn't if I was being paid, but if I'd committed to it. I really believe if we are faithful in the our commitments, we build a good local reputation.

I've been part of our city for over 40 years, and the local music scene for that long.


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Old 10-10-2015, 10:11 AM
jim_martin jim_martin is offline
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We already play 1/2 step down... Good idea about doing a full step, I've never done that before.
I've been pounding the water, hot tea and honey and throat lozenges.
I feel fine... I just can't hit the notes like I normally can.
I've tried the Apple Cider Vinegar, and the Vicks Personal Steamer, seemed to help a bit.
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Old 10-10-2015, 10:17 AM
RRuskin RRuskin is offline
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Originally Posted by jim_martin View Post
We already play 1/2 step down... Good idea about doing a full step, I've never done that before.
I've been pounding the water, hot tea and honey and throat lozenges.
I feel fine... I just can't hit the notes like I normally can.
I've tried the Apple Cider Vinegar, and the Vicks Personal Steamer, seemed to help a bit.
Getting over a cold myself. Did the hot water w/lemon & honey routine on the hour every hour, Airborne, cough syrup, aspirin, and benzocane laced lozenges, all as directed. It has helped quite a bit. Between that and adrenaline, I'm confident I'll make through my upcoming shows.
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Old 10-10-2015, 12:07 PM
jseth jseth is offline
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Jim... these are all tips from my one-time vocal coach, Judy Davis... google her to establish credibility...

- avoid ANY citrus while you're singing; citric acid causes the vocal cords to dehydrate.
(Lemon with tea and honey is great, just not when you're singing!)

-avoid alcohol of any type while singing or within 2 hours of singing tonight. Alcohol also dries out our vocal cords.

-Honey is the closest thing to the natural lubricant of the throat... try taking a tablespoon of honey and just let tiny bits into your mouth at a time, letting it dissolve and trickle down your throat. You can do this throughout the performance with a bit of planning and preparation.

-If you are experiencing severe hoarseness, a "stopgap" remedy is to cut a slice of onion (white, brown or yellow) and place into a saucer, then cover it completely with honey; let stand for at least 8 hours (if possible), then put the honey only into a container, and take little bits of it (as described above) throughout the night. This one got me through a 3 hour gig when I had partial laryngitis! Doesn't smell great but it sure worked...

-Avoid ANYTHING cold or iced while singing; the cold causes the vocal cords to contract, and what you want is for them to be relaxed and as "long" as possible.

-Good old Lipton tea with honey is about the best for our throats/vocal cords... something about the tannin in the tea that helps keep things in good shape; not extremely hot, just warm (and NO LEMON!). You can make up a thermos-full before hand and have it on stage with you when you want it.

-Talk as little as possible, both tonight and throughout the day; give your voice a rest!

-Warm up a bit before you sing, just to loosen things up... so you aren't trying to go from zero to 60 immediately!

-DEFINITELY keep a positive attitude and let yourself be excited about the gig (as opposed to apprehensive)... our mental state has far more to do with how we feel than most give credit or even consider...

Good luck! After the gig, just take it easy and give your body time to "come back"... it will, just like it has every other time you've experienced discomfort.

Feel good!
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Old 10-11-2015, 05:25 AM
Laughingboy68 Laughingboy68 is offline
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if I sip diluted pineapple juice during the gig, it'll get me through anything - challenging repertoire, longer than usual sets, colds, etc. I've even played gigs when my voice was laryngitic and it gets me through it.

I was quite skeptical when I first read about this tip, but I tried it and will go out of my way to make sure there is pineapple juice available every time I sing.

YMMV

Mike
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Old 10-11-2015, 05:56 AM
mphelps mphelps is offline
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCicvAeVQ4g

I hope this may help.

Mike
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Old 10-13-2015, 07:55 AM
jim_martin jim_martin is offline
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Thanks for post Mike,
I wound up watching a lot of this guys Youtube series. Good stuff.
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Old 10-13-2015, 08:20 AM
Silly Moustache Silly Moustache is offline
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Vocalzones.

I order them by the ton, keep a pack in every guitar case, and tend to use them for most performances - BUT they are also extremely good for dry coughs etc., so i keep them by my bedside too.

If they are good enough for Tom Jones and Katherine Jenkins and Dionne Warwick - they are good enough for me :

See: http://www.vocalzone.com/feeds/testi...tom-jones.aspx
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Old 10-13-2015, 10:39 AM
Random1643 Random1643 is offline
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How did your gig go?

Lotsa good ideas on the thread. A suggestion for future congested gigs. Dealing with a cold or allergies or not, the more I sing, the bigger my range, the clearer my voice. (I understand not everyone is wired this way; used to play in an acoustic vocal duo where my buddy was just the opposite.) Anyway, one method that helps me is 3 days out from the gig, 2 days out, 1 day, and the day of the gig, I need to make time to sing. Even if I'm just driving for work, I take along a pitch pipe and sing, sing, sing. In my case at least this is consistently helpful.

A one hour set at a recent fundraiser taught me this lesson all over again. I was coming out of 2 weeks of steady, low-grade congestion. Work and family hadn't allowed for much pre-gig singing. It was awful. The G above middle C is normally the top of my full voice range; I could barely hit an E. My voice sounded like I'd been gargling Drano mixed with gravel and wheat chaff. A guitarist who sat in thought some of the blues songs were cooler than usual; he cheerfully recommended more Richie Havens, Janis Joplin and Tom Waits material.
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Old 10-13-2015, 12:22 PM
jim_martin jim_martin is offline
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Thanks Everyone, for the replies to my post.
The gig turned out fine. I wound up only singing 2 sets until my voice gave out. Here are few of my takeaways:
1. I should have went to the doctor, when the cold started.
2. Tuning down a whole step helped a lot.
3. My partner did a really awesome job of taking over when I couldn't hit the harmonies.
4. I wished I had stayed more positive about the situation. I forget sometimes that I get to sing and play guitar in front of people! As my Dad used to say, "Never let them see you sweat!"

BR,
Jim

Last edited by jim_martin; 10-13-2015 at 12:43 PM.
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Old 10-14-2015, 10:07 AM
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Glad the show came through well enough.

Just for the record, I am a singer and the best (temporary) cure for sore throat is ginger ale tea (to relieve nasal congestion) AND drinking HOT wine. Heat the wine only 10 secs in the microwave and drink almost inmediately, itīs pretty nasty, but it works. The vapors present in the wine kill almost every bachteria and it really smoothes your throat. Of course singing is not just about the thorat, but also breathing. If your cold is so bad it gets to the point where you canīt breathe propperly, then you shouldnīt sing.
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Old 10-15-2015, 03:02 PM
jwing jwing is offline
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I believe people with colds should stay home so that they don't infect other people. Your music is not as important as my health. At least tell your audience that you are projecting viruses into the room, so that they can make an informed choice.
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Old 10-20-2015, 08:21 PM
alnico5 alnico5 is offline
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As a singer and a pharmacist, I highly recommend original strength Fisherman's Friend cough drops.
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