Getting comfortable on stage; what's your secret?

[nbs2005]

Hi all,

I've been trying to get more comfortable onstage doing open mics; I've done less than two dozen so still very early in the journey. It still amazes me how something I can easily play at home or even in front of a few friends jamming gets so freaking difficult on stage. A good tip I got was start with a really simple song for your first to get warmed up and embellish the changes/picking as you work through the song and get comfortable. I also got to take advantage of a green room last night spending some time before going up getting warmed up. What else do you do?

I know open mics are tough as you basically have 2 songs to develop a rapport; a nearly impossible task. But this is the only way I can get in front of folks right now.

Thanks,

Jeff

[UncleJesse]

All I can say is it takes time. I've been playing on stage with my Dad's bands since I was about 14 years old. I was so nervous at first. Then I had a band in high school that played live and was still nervous. Then I had a band in my 20s where we played a couple of hundred times and it was gone by then. Now I only feel nervous when I play with an uncomfortable rig or with a band that isn't my regular group of people but usually after a minute or two I settle in. I'd say it's definitely tough only doing a few songs at a time. I was basically doing long-form shows fairly early on. Just keep doing it and take every chance you can to play in front of people.

[nickv6]

Getting a quick laugh can relax you. A flip comment like, this is a very well known tune, but (the compere) hates it. Luckily I've arranged it so it's unrecognisable!

[Mr. Jelly]

What I have found is that it takes me several songs to relax a little. It also helps if I don't care about the audience so much. When I care about the audience, I get self-conscious.

Say yes to the challenge of performing. Expect performing to be demanding

Respect every song - Give the songs the life you see in them:

Perform each song to its fullest extent. Let them unfold

Lift the room - create a musical experience. Have confidence in the songs and their sequence

Be prepared to be nervous - slow the songs down and breathe while singing

be open and honest with the audience.
the audience is on your side the odd slip doesn’t matter
don’t let slips and mistakes break your concentration
people aren’t paying attention anyway, they’re thinking about themselves
expect things to go wrong – don’t let them break your concentration - don’t be self-critical

it’s about the feel, not perfection

[Daddyo]

Like all things, the more you do it the easier it gets. Not one single musician was ever cool and calm when they started out.

[Silly Moustache]

I re-opened my club this month and we had our first "Club Session" where people have a 15 minute spot.

Like happened in the brief opening up we had last year, the excellent singers/players were, like the others showing signs of nerves and made some flubs here and there.
Few of us have been in front of an audience for some time.

I guess its "nat'ch'l". Just keep doing it, and remember to entertain.

[Glennwillow]

I don't know how anyone could relax up on stage doing only two songs. It takes time for a performer to build rapport with the audience each time he or she gets up there.

When I was performing a lot, I got used to being up there and did not get quite so nervous. So experience matters a great deal. Just keep doing it, especially if you are enjoying it. Some people never get used to it, and for them, performing may be too stressful to be worth all the negatives involved.

Even when I was performing for significant money 30 years ago, it would always take me a couple of songs plus a good reaction from the audience before I would embrace the whole situation and have fun up there.

- Glenn

[rstaight]

In the mid seventies in High School Band I don't recall being nervous. Before that in the early Seventies late Sixties I was the same at my guitar recitals. Never really felt nervous.

A couple of the jams I go to have been asked to play in the local festivals. Didn't feel nervous at those either.

One odd thing that as followed me, the pieces I tend to struggle with during rehearsal I seem to nail when on stage.

[6L6]

Like others have suggested, you just have to keep at it. Experience builds confidence!

In addition to playing Open Mics and doing solo acoustic gigs for more years than I care to remember, I played for 27 years in a successful 50/60's Oldies R&R Band. For me, I've always found it MUCH more relaxing to play for people I didn't know vs playing for friends.

The fact that you've already made it to the stage means you've already taken the toughest step. it's all good from here on out!

[jklotz]

My solution, other than just to simply keep doing it, is to be very prepared. The more I know my tunes, backwards and forwards, the more my hands just take over and almost go on auto pilot for the first tune or so. The most nervous I get is playing something live for the 1st time. These days I almost never crash and burn because I've learned that, for me, there is a difference in knowing a tune and KNOWING a tune. My wife has learned to escape to a different part of the house but my poor dog gets to hear the repetition over and over.....

Here's a tip for you: when you think you are ready to perform a song, record it. On the computer, your phone, doesn't matter. Something about that red light being on kind of simulates the pressure of live performance. Then listen back and see the areas you need to work on. For me, if I can get an acceptable take on the recording, which may take several practice sessions, I usually can do it live. Plus that extra work will really boost your confidence for a gig. You may still be nervous when you get up there, but after a few bars, you'll start to know "hey, I got this" and that will ease the anxiety. Works for me.

[Dave Hicks]

Originally Posted by nbs2005

... A good tip I got was start with a really simple song for your first to get warmed up and embellish the changes/picking as you work through the song and get comfortable...

That works for me - if I get through the first one or two without a trainwreck, I can start to enjoy myself. (Of course, the open mike I've been going to lately only allots each performer one tune at a time. )

Also, I notice many people just jump into songs without a verbal intro. I like to say a bit about the song, and that helps to focus.

D.H.

[619TF]

Alcohol is the answer. Hey, it worked for so many of our guitar heroes. Yes, one has to be careful as too little won't work and too much? Well YOU won't work.

[gfirob]

There is a lot of very good advice here, Mr Jelly’s list being a great example.

I think preparation is key, knowing the songs in depth, inhabiting the songs to a point that the energy taken up up by nervousness does not effect the performance.

And the other part of that, is when you (inevitably) blow a note or chord or forget a line, that you just roll on through and keep singing, acknowledging the flub only with a smile. There is a great video on Youtube of John Prine blowing the introduction of a song and just laughing through it.

Of course, he was John Prine…

But I think it is just part of the process of performance. The more comfortable you are (or appear to be) the more comfortable the audience is. The more awkward you are (or appear to be) the more uncomfortable the audience becomes.

[Goat Mick]

Here's a little different take on the mental side of it. Most beginners walk out on stage and feel like everyone there is just watching and waiting for them to screw up. That is incredible pressure to overcome and give a good performance. However in actuality the truth is when you walk out onstage the audience is wanting you to succeed. They came to be entertained and they want you to be the one that entertains them for the time that you have on stage. So the audience is already pulling for you and all you have to do is deliver the songs and they don't have to be delivered perfectly. Just give it your all and put your heart into it and you'll be a hit.

[reeve21]

Originally Posted by Goat Mick

They came to be entertained and they want you to be the one that entertains them for the time that you have on stage. So the audience is already pulling for you and all you have to do is deliver the songs and they don't have to be delivered perfectly. Just give it your all and put your heart into it and you'll be a hit.

Hey Mick, your thoughts brought Jimmy Buffet to mind. His guitar quacks like a duck, and his voice is "pitchy" as they like to say on the TV talent shows, but he gives it his all every night-- and people love him for it. But I'd still like to see how he draws in a dry town