Do People Like to Hear Us Perform?

[rmp]

Originally Posted by mikealpine

Most do, as long as you know your place, and you're halfway decent at it. If you're at a family gathering and you just take out a guitar, people might like a song or two, but then may want to get back to chatting. If you're playing sing-along stuff, and the crowd is into it, keep playing. If it isn't going over, stop. Regardless, better to stop too soon than play too long. At open mics, people are mostly there to play, in my opinion. Yes, it's great to hear others and most are happy to listen, especially because they would like the same courtesy. If you're the entertainer, you might be background music, so prepare your ego for that.

So mostly I think people like it, but it is situational and you need to gauge your audience.

Well put. I agree with this.

Most of us don't get to play in "Concert" settings a lot where the specific goal of the audience is to just listen.

So for us mere mortals, most of the time, when we're out working some where, you ARE background music.. pubs, taverns and coffee houses, functions, etc.

[ewalling]

Originally Posted by Osage

I love live music! I both perform and see it regularly. That said, I rarely enjoy a solo performer doing covers at a restaurant during diner time. I've gotten to the point where I'd rather just eat somewhere else.

I would generally prefer covers over so-called 'original' material in such situations. My main beef is volume - too many solo or small-group performers turn up the volumes to uncomfortable levels in a seeming attempt to obliterate all other activity in the room.

[Joe Beamish]

The setting and situation determine everything. What kind of music, how loud it is, how “sing along” it is, how many instrumental solos there are, etc.

Sometimes it’s about sing-along covers. Sometimes it’s about staying in the background, other times it’s all about your originals, sometimes it’s somewhere in the middle.

Just depends.

[L20A]

My band only play at places where the people have come to to hear the music.
In the past, my band played for places where we were just background music and it was never fun.

I also do solo shows for assisted living homes.
The people at these places attend my concerts to hear the music.
They are a great audience and I enjoy performing for them.

[gfirob]

I always pay attention to how the audience is responding. Heads nodding in time, singing along quietly if they know the song, or ignoring the music and talking to their date or eating (if its a restaurant). Venues are all different. The best is a quiet audience there to hear acoustic music. Worst is a bar full of drunks. And all kinds of variants in between.

I am amazed at the idea of people paying to play, as Silly describes. I guess it's a British thing.

[rockabilly69]

Originally Posted by Glennwillow

Do People Like to Hear Us Perform?

Well, some people care about music and some people don't. Even if a live performer is really good, if a listener is not moved by music, the performance will mean very little.

I'm always surprised by people who don't respond to music, but there is a significant percentage of people who don't.

In fact, I think most people are motivated by social connections much more than by music, and that's why some folks can be so rude regarding their behavior as an audience in front of performing musicians.

- Glenn

In my life as a full-time performing musician, I have found EVERY single thing you say here to be true. Although it is a hit on my ego. When I find myself in situations where the audience is more involved with the social connection, especially at high end restaurants, I just pull back the volume, so they can hear each other without straining, and I give them background music. I know they are straining when I see them lean into each other to speak. But I still try and play it with the same attention to detail as I would louder, because I know some people in the venue are really listening. I have to play to the lowest common denominator. It's what I'm paid for, to make their night more enjoyable.

[gerhardp]

Only a few do.
Most come for the social event, and if you can socialize with your listeners you'll always have a nice crowd.
I can't and I won't, so not much come to the venue because I'm there.
It is what it is.

[jseth]

Oh, I don't believe it is any different now than it has always been...

I learned when I was a teenager that not everyone "hears" music like I do, and that everyone listens and appreciates music in their own way. Unfathomable to me, that folks don't like music, but that's what makes a horse-race, as my Grandma used to say...

Although I'm not a big fan of musicians who play all "cover songs", especially those who do iconic songs EXACTLY the way the artist did them, I appreciate the effort it takes and their obvious love for the songs involved... to me, it seems a lot like "painting by the numbers", and I would much rather hear someone interpreting a song in their own fashion, or playing a song that they created.

Personally, I would not play a gig that involved "sing-along"-type songs, but I know a lot of folks like them.

Music and the expression of one's music, is a VERY personal thing... and I feel it is wonderful for anyone to play and sing what they feel and like...

[Tuberoast]

I play in a duo as the only guitarist, the other sings and plays some harmonica. Two sets of about 35 min each works fine. There are always people who want to talk and a few who want you to "play something we know''.

[tsmith28]

As an amateur guitarist, I'm pretty sure people don't enjoy listening to me play...at least based on feedback from my wife and kids. 😁 And it's not like I'm a beginner practicing basic chord progressions for hours on end. I've been playing for 25 years and can play and sing a few hundred songs reasonably well. They just don't enjoy listening as much as I enjoy playing.

But I found a good solution: We will occasionally have friends over (usually one or two families at a time), and at some point in the evening we'll grab the guitar and do some "living room karaoke". I.e., people take turns choosing songs to sing along to while I play guitar. If one of our guests plays guitar as well they join in, otherwise it's just me. But it always ends up being a lot of fun and we typically last 2-3 hours or so. This makes is more of a group activity than a performance, which is way more enjoyable all around.

[Glennwillow]

I don't think it's any worse now than it used to be, either, it's just more obvious. A whole table full of people staring at their phones...

My wife and I made a pretty good living for a while making music with original songs, but then there were always the criticisms of "why don't you play something people know?" Which speaks to the tendency many listeners have of essentially only liking what they know. So... that's why players do covers. It's the surest way to appeal to an audience.

Audiences most certainly react much more enthusiastically to songs played like the original artist. It's only paint-by-numbers playing when the song is super easy; in many cases doing a cover well shows skill. It lets the audience know you can play as well as the pros play. There is certainly a place for doing a cover with your own unique arrangement, and if you are very good, you might actually get somebody's attention. I have certainly heard covers I thought were very good and yet unique.

I do covers these days because writing songs is hard work, and I no longer want to work that hard unless somebody is paying me. I still want to keep on making music for the fun of it, and I still feel there is plenty to learn from others. Still, I can tell very quickly from the results of views on my YouTube channel and here on the AGF when I cover something that people know vs. something they don't. Even guitar players listen to what they know.

- Glenn

[buddyhu]

It depends. Depends on the listener, the songs, the musician, the setting, the volume of the music. I have walked out on some good music (and even some great music) when it is too loud (which can mean too loud for a small room with a lot of hard surfaces, or objectively so loud as to damage hearing, or too loud for the setting, like loud upbeat music in a coffee shop at 9AM, etc. etc.).

Many people enjoy good music that fits the context played at a “fitting” volume.

[Gordon Currie]

Originally Posted by Mr. Jelly

I asked some people at an open mic if people like to hear us perform. Everyone in the discussion were quite sure that people do.

Your thoughts?

I'm not sure who US is, and what they play. Singer-songwriters? Solo guitar instrumentalists? Bluegrass bands? Folk punk? Original music, covers, or some mix?

I think for many audiences live music is nothing special. Their decision on attending a live show might be colored by non-musical factors like which of their friends will be there, or how much $ it will cost to eat/drink/attend, or whether there will be potential partners there.

My theory is that the more one PAYS, the more one is motivated to get one's money's worth. Generally people will pay more attention to the artist they paid $50 to see, as opposed to the free show.

As always, the committed music listeners are few and far between. More people see music as audio wallpaper to decorate their lifestyles.

[Corndog]

Originally Posted by Silly Moustache

I run an Acoustic Music Club, twice monthly.

On the first Saturday afternoon of each month, we have a Song Circle.

Literally people sitting round taking turns to sing/play a song/instrumental.

On the third Friday I hold our Club Sessions.

I offer 15 minute spots to all who would like to play (within the times of 8 to 11. Sometimes I ask them to do less than 15 minutes, to get everyone in, but the pre-booked acts get priority.

Frankly there are people that we love to hear sing/play, and others that we adopt fixed grins waiting for them to to finish with polite British stoicism.

We have one husband and wife duo who are absolutely awful, (she can't sing or play but thinks she can) We all sigh with relief if they don't come.

As most who come are players rather than "audience" most come to play rather than listen to others.

It is an unashamedly "pay to play" situation and I need their entrance fee to cover hall hire, but when things have proved difficult (venue issues, my illness, people flocked to assist and keep it going, so I guess I'm doing something right.

So, uh, (laughing here ) you're fairly confident they aren't frequenting these pages on AGF? Or, maybe, you're hoping they're reading this thread?

[gfirob]

I think it is interesting to do interpretations of covers of perhaps less well known songs. I like especially to interpret songs sung originally by women because you can never duplicate the original. I think there is some kind of essential spirit to a song that, it if is presented with grace, really engages an audience. I think variety is important so I try to mix things up as much as possible, but I always include some kind of familiar songs, even if they are old songs. It is very hard to write a really good original song, I think. Willie Nelson wrote 500 songs and I think about five percent of them are really excellent songs, but they are very excellent songs. Same with Towns Van Zandt, or Merle Haggard or John Prine. It is hard to beat those guys. But you can tell when an audience is digging it and when they are not.