A guide, with tips, for touring singers. The voice is the primary means of communication for human beings. In music, the vocal performance often conveys the emotion of the song. You can replace broken instruments but a singing voice that has been damaged through overwork or abuse is difficult to repair. As the singer or vocalist, … Read more
You can create a conducive atmosphere in the venue and enhance your set by using walk-in and intro music. Rehearsing your music and making a good set list are vital parts of presenting a great show. You can enhance your performance by giving some thought to walk-in music and an intro piece. Walk-in music. Walk-in … Read more
Best practice for this vital performance aid The set is the songs you will perform; the set list is just that—a list of the songs in the order you have decided you should play them. ‘Set list’ refers to both the order and the physical piece of paper written out for everyone to follow. Order, order. … Read more
Opening up for a major artist may leave you no room on stage You may end up supporting/opening up for a larger headline band. You may also find that by the time the headline band has set up its touring PA, lights, backline, and power distribution, the stage for the evening is full of black … Read more
Present your input list in a standard format that any audio engineer, promoter, or rep, will understand. Your input list is an important document that makes up your technical rider. “Input” in this case refers to the sound sources you use on stage that need “inputting” into the venue sound system. The input list for … Read more
A carnet (pronounced ‘kar-nay’) is a kind of passport for musical equipment. The ATA Carnet (to use the correct name) permits tax- and duty-free import and export of your gear into 87 countries and acts as a ‘bond’. Having a carnet says that you are taking music gear into a different country, and you will … Read more
One of my tips for career advancement in the music business is to know your place in ‘catering’, the area set aside backstage to feed everyone working on a show. On a large-scale show (700-capacity and upward), it is common practice to bring in a catering crew to cook hot, nutritious meals for the artists, … Read more
Touring creates lots of paperwork – contracts, riders, TV performance agreements, hotel rooming lists, etc – most of which has changing content. An example is the technical rider which contains an input list. The input list will change from time to time (the number of channels listed or the sources on stage for instance) as … Read more
The AAA – access all areas – pass is the revered token that denotes hip rock n roll success. You either have one, or you don’t. Having an AAA pass means you are in the band, in the crew, or are so close to the band they deem it necessary for you to have the … Read more
The person employed to set up, run, and maintain the venue’s sound system for visiting acts is the venue’s audio technician a.k.a. the “house sound guy”. If you create music that needs to be amplified—(pretty much any contemporary music) then the house engineer will help you when you arrive to perform your show. Likewise, you … Read more