Stage Basics
by Iggs
Attention musicians:
Here are some steps you can take to ensure you have a great gig:
1. Show up to the gig on time. Even though you are the main focus of the evening, there are people who have been at the venue hours before you, working to make sure the gig goes smoothly. These include the lighting techs who have miles (sometimes an exaggeration, sometimes not) of cable to run, and have to climb anywhere from 20 to 40 feet in the air across a metal truss to get the best lighting focus for your show. In a bigger venue, the lights are focused just for you. Also, the sound and backline guys have put the PA together, set up the stage, monitors, instruments, mics, etc. and have made sure everything is working properly before you even walk in the door. These guys have a schedule which ensures that the band is sound-checked with enough time to diagnose and fix any technical problems and have everything working at 100% before doors open, and also have a decent amount of time to eat before the show starts. Showing up late for your own gig messes this schedule up, and really pisses people off. The men and women working at the venue don’t care who you think you are. They showed up to work hours before you, and will be working long after you’re gone.
2. Communicate with the stage hands and techs. It’s much better for your show to make sure that the stagehands and techs know exactly what you need to ensure you have a smooth gig. They are there to make sure the show is great for the band and audience. One of the most important people involved is the monitor guy. He is responsible for making sure you have the best mix possible in your monitor wedge or in-ears. The mix can only be perfect if you tell him/her exactly what you want. I have talked to musicians who say nothing to the monitor guy all night, then complain about their mix. Don’t be afraid to ask him to adjust levels in your wedge. That’s what he’s there for!
3. Singers beware of the monitors. If you are holding a mic in your hand, be aware of where the monitor wedges are. Don’t point the mic directly into the wedge or it will feedback. And it will be loud. If you walk into the audience, be aware of where the main PA speakers are. Again, avoid pointing the mic directly into the speakers. It will feed back and the audience will hear it.
4. Be flexible. In a perfect world, every venue would have a large stage, plenty of power, great lighting, and good spots for monitor world and Front-of-House. This is not a perfect world, and the techs putting the show on are not miracle workers. We all have to do the best with what we’ve got. Try to be professional enough to be willing to change and adapt to your surroundings.
5. Don’t be sneaky onstage. If you’re on stage at the same time as the techs/stagehands be sure to stay out of their way. Musicians have a bad habit of tripping or bumping into stagehands carrying thousands of dollars worth of extremely heavy equipment. It’s dark onstage, there are cables and stompboxes and numerous other hazards to avoid so help your crew out! If your not sure if a stagehand can see you coming behind him, let him know. A simple ‘coming behind you’ can keep someone out of the hospital and save your gear from being dropped.
6. Above all: have fun. You’re in a band. It’s supposed to be fun. If you walk into the gig with a bad attitude, no one is going to want to work with you, and you will have a shitty gig. The techs won’t care either. They get paid either way.