Thursday, August 16, 2007

The Bandleader Makes All The Difference

I recently had the experience of playing two gigs with the same band. Only thing was, the sign on the bandstand (and the drummer) was different. It was one freelance gig apiece for two different offices.

It was interesting to see how the musicians responded to the featured vocalists who were leading each gig. The affairs were similiar MO weddings with similar repertoire. One affair was unpleasant to play (from when the singer arrived after the cocktail hour) while the other was a lot of fun the whole time. The other musicians kept contrasting the two gigs. I think the difference comes down to respect. On the first gig, many of the musicians felt the singer didn't respect them. On the second gig, they felt respected and appreciated and it came across in their playing.

Personally, I didn't have issues with with either singer, but I felt the other musicians sentiments were affecting their playing. Obviouly, it's more fun to play a gig here everyone is into it, rather than one where some people are feling disrespected.

Thing is, I'm pretty sure the first vocalist is pleased with how the gig came off and has no idea of how many of the musicians perceive him and his behavior towards them.