[Dixielandjazz] Busking

[Elazar Brandt]

Shalom Tom, Bill, and everyone,

We have these Peruvian groups here in Israel, too, although the war time
conditions of the last 3 years seem to have scared them off. There used to be
one in Jerusalem, and I've seen another one in Tel Aviv. They all look the same
to me, but I'd swear I once saw two separate groups at opposite ends of the
pedestrian mall in Tel Aviv. They don't use or need speakers here. You can hear
the damn bass drum for miles. Stomps on whatever any other street musos are
doing in the area. But, yes, those groups make a fortune, in CD sales, selling
pan flutes, Latin American blankets, and whatever. And you don't have to "salt"
your case or hat to get tips. I've found it doesn't make any difference at all.
People know what to do. A friend and I once tried an experiment, playing on the
street with no receptacle for money. People were all over us asking "Where do we
put the money?" They left it on the ground in front of us, some put it in our
pockets, or handed it to us, expecting us to stop playing to take it.

What you need to do is have a good presentation so they want to give you
something. I mean, in Jerusalem you can make good money begging, without the
music. You just need a cup and ragged clothes, and don't bathe or shave for a
couple days. They probably do better than the musicians. One of our beggars once
told me he lives in his car -- a Mercedes! But I don't like to present the image
of a beggar. I like it to be clear people are paying for the show. I've had
people bring me sandwiches, plates of hot food from a nearby restaurant, cold
drinks, candy bars, once got a gold/ruby ring in my hat. Do a good show, and
they'll figure out how to reward you for it.

Is it a living? Depends how much you need mad how much you're willing to get out
and play. We as a trio/quartet could probably make about $1000 a month per
player on the street if we played 5 days a week, 3 hours a day. And that's
without CDs. Now for here, that's not half bad. If you're out irregularly, the
income reflects that. If your focus and performance quality drops, that will
also affect the income. When I miss a week on the street, I find it takes me a
couple sessions to get my street chops back. (An old Israeli fellow came to me
once and asked me if I forgot how to play!) Nobody asked you to be there. They
didn't come to hear you. You have to grab their attention and then hold onto it.
Takes some work. But if you hit a groove, draw a crowd and work them, the pay
can be decent. And that's in Israel in "wartime"!

But more important than the pay on the street is the gigs you can land when
people hear you play. Gigs here pay $50 to $200 per player, depending on the
job. For a larger band, we have to take a bit less if we want to book the whole
band. What I often do is sell a smaller group, then show up with everyone and
present them as a bonus, saying we decided we'd rather appear with the whole
band for the quoted price. Frequently the customer will make up the difference
with a nice tip, and if not, we still prefer to play with the whole group. But
then you have to be able to operate legally, providing legal receipts to people,
reporting income and paying the taxes. A lot of street players are not willing
to do this, and therefore lose a lot of good gigs.

For anyone who wants to try working the street, you have to be prepared to get
out there several times before you see substantial return. You can go out one
day and do great, and go do the same thing the next day in the same place, and
not make your bus fare. And if you get bitter or disappointed about it, it shows
in your playing, and you shoot yourself in the foot. I recall playing once and
people were putting in our equivalent of pennies. A friend was sitting nearby
watching, and, after finally collecting about 70 or 80 cents, I looked at him
between songs and said, I'm not leaving 'til I make a shekel!" You have to be
willing to take the highs and lows. It averages out OK if you do a good job.

In some places, you can run into problems with crime, even organized crime. But
that's a story for another posting.

On with the show!

Elazar
Misrad HaJazz
Doctor Jazz Band
Jerusalem, Israel
<www.israel.net/ministry-of-jazz>
Tel: +972-2-679-2537



> -----Original Message-----
> From: TCASHWIGG at aol.com [mailto:TCASHWIGG at aol.com]
> Sent: Wednesday, July 30, 2003 8:45 AM
> To: Dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com
> Subject: Re: [Dixielandjazz] Busking
>
>
>
> Have any of you ever done this sort of thing? How 'bout you, Elazar? You
> mentioned earning some money this way . . . would you consider it lucrative
> or even sufficient for the effort?
>
> ...
>
> Elezar just stated exactly what he does in his post that gave you the
> brilliant idea to discover the fine art of busking.  He stated that
> he makes a modest income from it, and has expanded it to include additional
players now that do
> the same thing.  sheesh!
>
> ...
>
> ELAZAR . . . YOU ARE AN INSPIRATION TO ME - MY HERO!!
>