Mic placement

[Deliberate1]

Originally Posted by KevWind

Oh boy--lots of good advice __Make sense ?

OP here. Yes, lots of sensible suggestions. I have already put one into action. I am practicing the selections I am performing this Thursday, and am doing it with eyes closed, or just without looking at the neck, except during the passages where there are no vocals. I can do it (mostly) with fair accuracy. And working on keeping my head up and forward as well. It is just a matter of doing it enough to build the confidence that I won't crash and burn.
Thanks all, as usual.

David

[broy]

Originally Posted by JonPR

Firstly, get the voice volume at the right level with your mouth around 6" away - not right against the mic. That gives you more freedom of head movement. (Professional singers move nearer and further from the mic according to how loud they are singing.)

Secondly, lower the mic, so you're singing slightly down into it - so if you need to look at the fretboard, your mouth doesn't move so far away.

Thirdly (or alternatively), practice keeping your mouth in the same position relative to the mic, while moving your head and/or guitar enough to see the fretboard - assuming you don't have to do this too often. This will probably mean raising the guitar neck, and moving your head a little to the right while rotating it left.
You often see pros performing this kind of manouvre, e.g when doing something like tuning or moving a capo while speaking into the mic.

Great advice here. Been practicing singing approx 6 in. away from the mic, and does help with my vocals getting lost. Good tip!

[Brent Hahn]

Originally Posted by Deliberate1

... I learned that I should not start with a finger style song, because my fingers instantly turned to concrete.

I'm pretty sure that most of us, either in bands or solo, have a bulletproof, in-your-sleep song or two that are good for the first song of a show. The kind that even sounds okay when you're totally out of tune and can't hear a thing.

[Deliberate1]

Update: OP here. I performed three songs at our local open mic last Thursday. It went substantially better than the one last month that precipitated the original post.

First of all. I was very carefully about mic placement, and had the sound guy place the mic lower (I was seated) and pointing up at my mouth.

Secondly, I stayed about 6-9" away from the mic at all times.

Finally, it just went better because I approached the experience with a healthier attitude and with significantly more confidence. Even when I forgot a line of a song (I wrote...), I just went to the next verse, without perseverating about it.

Next month will be even better. Thanks again for all the help.

David

[Robin, Wales]

David, that's great!

I'm probably about 2 year's solo playing/singing experience ahead of you. It's a steep learning curve, like learning to drive. Everything rushes at you at first but it is not too long until you get comfortable with the mechanics of driving and can just concentrate on "reading the road".

Making a realistic analysis of how a performance went, identifying what you could change for next time, and then working on those changes, is a skill in itself.

I see a lot of "talented" folks at open mics who, in reality, are simply well skilled. They have put in a lot of targeted, effective practice. And that gives me an incentive to do the same - intelligent practice, based on real experiences, pays off.

[Deliberate1]

Robin, my friend, thanks very kindly for the words of encouragement. The event last week was really the first time I have played guitar publicly where I truly felt I was in control of the song, and not the other way around.

What also helped was the fact that I was thoroughly warmed up, musically, by the time my slot came around. Perhaps you recall that I am a life-long woodwinds player. My current band did a three song jazz slot with me on clarinet, which is deep into my comfort zone. All fun and absolutely no jitters on the horn. So I was already kind of primed. Also, I find that playing my horns actually opens up my voice, because it opens up my throat.

I got really positive feedback from my pals (and strangers) after my set - for my playing and singing and original songs. And offers to collaborate vocally with others, which surprises me because my range is at the same frequency as a gravel pit.

Hope you are having big fun with your outings, and hope that it brings you great joy.

David