[Dixielandjazz] Applause

[Stephen G Barbone]

 From my point of view as a band leader, applause is a positive  
reaction that feeds back audience energy to the band. Which in turn,  
encourages the musicians to reciprocate by generating more energy back  
to the audience.

IMO, applause in recognition of a tune is not the audience applauding  
itself, but rather their appreciation for the band playing something  
that they have heard before and will enjoy hearing again. We always  
play a mix of familiar tunes and not so familiar tunes which works  
well for us.

To me there is nothing that saps the energy of a band more than not  
having any audience reaction at all, be it applause or cheering or  
whatever.

I remember fondly a 2 year residency that we had at a brew pub, a  
decade ago, playing there twice a month. Crowd was mostly young and  
the noise level was high, but they cheered and applauded wildly for  
both solos and ensembles. And they broke out into spontaneous dances.  
No doubt they felt they were part of the show and we encouraged that.

An old traddie friend of mine, an proponent of the idea that Dixieland  
was art music and should be listened to silently, came to hear us  
there and said, "Geez, I could hardly hear the band over the noise.  
These kids don't know what they are listening to."

To me that was not the point. They were enjoying the music, having a  
good time which I felt is the point. Much like when I was a kid in NYC  
and went to Ryans, The Central Plaza, the Stuyvasent Casino, the  
Cinderella Club, the Melody Lounge Nicks, etc. These were not quiet  
venues and most bands that played them enjoyed a similar experiences  
with crowd energy. I didn't inhabit these venues to listen to, or play  
Art music in silence. I was there to smoke cigarettes, drink, chase  
women and hang around with others who felt similarly.

Our brew pub gig ended when management wanted us to switch from  
Thursday nights to Saturday Nights, with no increase in pay. As  
working musicians, we declined because as most working musicians know,  
Saturday Nights are the big money night and such a switch made no  
economic sense to us.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone
www.myspace.com/barbonestreetjazzband