[Dixielandjazz] Rehearsing in Front of an Audience

[Ministry of Jazz]

Shalom Jazz Fans,

Pardon me, but I assumed it would be clear when I suggested taking
rehearsals out to the streets or parks, that I did not mean the kind of
rehearsals where you stop every few bars to iron out problems. I was
referring to the kind of rehearsals where you play to keep repertoire fresh,
or maybe to throw in a few new tunes (not cold, but that the players have
been learning and are ready to take them for a test drive), or just to
improve how you reach out and grab the crowd, which is harder on the street
than in a paid gig. Or, as I suggested, to give students or new band members
a chance to break in before going on a real gig.

Depending on how you work the street crowd, you might have a gathered
audience for 5-10 minutes or more, but just as often, people don't stop at
all, or they stand and listen to part of a tune, and then go on their way.
You don't have to be so polished for this kind of crowd. Now I don't mean
that it's OK to play badly. But the street can stand some rough spots as you
play newer material or with newer players. You want to go over something
again? You don't have to say, "OK, take it from the top, guys." Just play
another tune or two, and you will have a new crowd who didn't hear you the
first time. Then do your new number again.

Sit-ins? On the street, we encourage it, but we are careful not to get
idiots who will try to upstage us, or who can't play. At a paid gig, I
almost never allow sit-ins, for all the reasons everyone gave, but with
exceptions, as noted in other posts. With a little practice, you can discern
who will work and who won't. Dr Jazz has a handful of washboard players who
are "regulars". These are people who tried it once, sometimes at our
insistence, and it worked, and so whenever they come by while we're playing,
they don't even have to ask. They take the washboard, or we hand it to them,
and away they go. And this is fine. Sometimes I stop high school kids who
are walking along with instrument cases and invite them to do a song with
us. We have charts if they don't know the songs. Of course, we have learned
to note how they're dressed, groomed, how they carry themselves, do they
seem cocky, etc., and we avoid those who we get bad vibes from. But
generally it works out OK, and the crowds love it. I guess it depends on
what kind of image you want to project, and what kind of show you want to
put on.

Once I saw a teenage boy walking along with a trumpet case that said "Bach".
I figured, how bad can he be if he's playing a Bach? So I asked if he plays
jazz, and he said he does, so I asked him to play a tune with us. He opened
the case and pulled out a Jupiter, or Blessing, or some more modest name
horn, whereupon I told him, "My other horn is a Bach," which it is, but I
wasn't playing it that day. He played a couple songs with us, and did OK.

Street performing is its own world. You can get away with a lot. You can
learn a lot. And you can work on improving your game, right in front of the
crowd. OK, so it's not a full blown nose to the grindstone workout, but you
can still put the band through its paces.

I do make every effort to respect my passive audience on the street. One
thing I almost never do is to stop or start a song in the middle, or play
too loud, or make abrupt or startling noises. (We don't like startling
noises in downtown Jerusalem!) If people want to talk to me or shake hands,
they wait until I finish the song, even if someone is barking at me that he
wants to hire us for a wedding. I point to the business cards, and they can
either wait for a break or call me later. I don't stop songs to sell CDs
either. I believe people who frequent downtown appreciate me for this,
because I create an upbeat, comfortable atmosphere that relieves stress
rather than adding to it.

As for playing for free, I like to think of it as advertising for free. And
you can usually pick up some change in tips that will help make the effort
worthwhile.

Another couple of shekels' worth from:

Elazar Brandt
Doctor Jazz Dixieland Band
Tekiya Brass Ensemble
Jerusalem, Israel
www.israel.net/ministry-of-jazz
+972-2-679-2537



-----Original Message-----
From: Larry Walton Entertainment - St. Louis
[mailto:larrys.bands at charter.net]
Sent: Sunday, December 16, 2007 8:13 AM
To: Robert S. Ringwald
Cc: Dixieland Jazz Mailing List
Subject: Re: [Dixielandjazz] Rehearsing in Front of an Audience


Everything you said is absolutely true.  We have done all that but without
gigs at least fairly often it's hard to keep focus and you will lose the
edge.  But as I said playing for free is against my grain.  I used the word
rehearsal very loosely but like you I don't "rehearse" in public.  If I do
anything like that it won't be "let's try it again at the top guys."

I'm not sure exactly what I will do but I have to do something or my big
Dixie band will wilt and just go away.  I had that happen before.  They
really perk up when a public performance is pending.
Larry
StL