Practical skills - Drum practice

I practiced some of the set choices today, focussing on listening to the selected tracks and trying to determine to beat of the drums. I often sit and listen to the tracks over and over so I can solely focus on the drum instrumental.

From this I begin to practice on my drum kit, breaking down the song into sections, often focussing on the melody and chorus first then the song intro and finally the way it finish's.

Warm up techniques- Building stamina on the drums for performances comes from practice and often playing hard rock drum beats for example system of a down. This practice builds my fitness and stamina.

Knowledge

Band practice at college

We all familiarised ourselves with the set list, sharing the problems we faced whilst practising. One of our issues is coordinating the band as often members are absent from college. It is hard to find a week where we all attend as their are so many of us in the band.

As long as I focus on my drum set, and everyone works from home I hope we can bring it together as the weeks go on.

I enjoy performing but I am lacking motivation at the moment.

Evaluation of practice- I think we need to use familiar songs for our performance as it may be an easier way to co-ordinate the individual members and songs that we know may make learning our individual melodies easier.

Review of rehearsal

Today's rehearsal was challenging, I often find it overwhelming as their are alot of opinions and ideas. Often we spend to much time focussing on everyone's ideas that it leaves little time to actually play. As I'm the youngest I can feel like my voice is not important or valued. I need to build confidence in my experience and skills as I have alot to offer and have experience at a performing level from my band at home.

Evaluation- After careful consideration I tried to share some of my experience with the group but I found so many members had conflicting opinions and it was hard to find my place in the band.

Arranging

Today I practised with the band although we had limited members due to absence.

I managed to run through all the songs but I think we need to get tighter on our introductions and remember to keep in time with the drum's and bass.

I really enjoy meeting with the band, I just wish our schedules lined up a little better. For me to travel all the way into Sighthill is a long journey and if no one is there I often loose motivation with the project.

Song writing

We didn't manage to write any original songs because we didn't collaborate well. Our musical differences were apparent throughout which caused conflict within the band. We decided to play the following songs which suited everyone.

Song list

1. Play that funky music by Wild Cherry

2. EX Factor- Missy Lauren Hill

3. Get Lucky by Daft Punk

Stage management

• Singer- centre at the front

• Bass player- left of the singer set back slightly from the singer

• Drummer- Back of the stage centred behind singer

• 2nd singer- slightly to the right of the main singer

• Guitarist 1- next to basist

• Guitarist 2- far right of the stage

Equipment

• Full drum kit plus breakables- drum kit micd

• Bass amp

• guitar am 1 & 2

• roughly 5 monitors on stage

• 2 microphones with PA system

• 2 guitars

• 1 bass

• pedal board (guitar)

• single pedal (bass)

• 
  

Lights

• Lighting rig with light tech to deliver lighting suited to the performance. No specific colour required.

• Sound engineer to manage the sound and keep all levels equal with focus on singer.

RESEARCH

Queen's Live Aid performance in 1985 is considered one of the greatest live performances of all time and “can now officially be claimed as the world’s favourite live performance” according to ticketsourse.com.

WHY????

• They had a comedian crowd warmer.

• Right from the start the band was engaging and inviting the audience to be a part of the experience.

• They communicated with each other to stay in sync.

• The band moves around the stage. They don’t just stand there.

• They have smooth, planned transitions between songs.

• They have interactive moments for the audience. And the band interacts with each other.

• the band looks enthusiastic to be there.

How to prepare

• Plan time to practice

• Be honest with yourself about what you still need to work on.

• Pick a song structure that makes sense to you.

• Practice in different rooms so that you get used to different set ups

• Practice for endurance. play through the set without taking a break.

Listen to the song a million times!!!!!!!!!

Practice Practice Practice

• We aimed to practice as much as we could.

• Long days at college running through the set over and over again.

  
  

During this time I felt we really bonded as we all wanted to perform well at the Mash house. We all began to get excited!

This really helped bring the band together after weeks of feeling unmotivated.

Roles and Responsibilities relating to live performances.

Elements

Engaging the audience

Don't make mistakes

Have fun whilst performing

Look confident

Job roles

Deciding what to wear on stage

What the performers look like on stage

Band positioning is important

Engaging the audience

Positioning instruments

Lighting

TIMING IS EVERYTHING!

Promoter

Advertise the gig

Leaflets

social media, facebook etc

Posters round college

Health & safety

Risk assessments

The common types of risks

Manual handling – lifting

Tripping

Electrics – risk of electric shock

crushing

aggressive members of the public

Venue manager

Who looks after the band

Understanding band member roles

Most bands have 4 members

two guitarists, a bassist, and a drummer

Singer engages the audience

Drummer controls/sets the pace

Bassit set the rhythm

"Effective communication is key to a band’s success. When we share our ideas freely, everyone gets to contribute. This leads to better performances and teamwork".

Lead vocalist- Front position, engages audience

Guitarist- Leads melody

Bass player - foundation of the band, leads rhythm and sound.

Drummer- Keeps the band in time and creates energy!

Back up vocalist- supports the singer/harmonies

IMPORTANT

It’s important for everyone to share their ideas.

"We all communicate in our own ways, which can sometimes cause problems. But, by understanding these differences, we can solve issues and get along better.

When we respect each other’s differences, we build trust."

i watched a couple videos to get my drum beats sorted for play that funky music and ex factor because i wanted to make it more interesting and fun to play and also keep the main elements to so hear are the links

Drums with Zsa' Davis"Lauryn Hill- Ex Factor"

Play That Funky Music - Wild Cherry DRUM COVER

Wild Cherry - Play That Funky Music - Drum Cover by 유한선[DCF]

there is no link for get lucky because I really wanted to come up with my own groove so I can have a bit of fun in the middle of the set just a bit of katie

1. I focussed my research on two areas of performance. The 1st area was the roles and responsibilities relating to live performances and then looked into one area of this research a little deeper which focussed on the band member positions.

2. WHY? My research suggested that band positioning during a performance was vital. I wanted to understand the influence and impact this would have on our performance at the mash house.

The research gave me a wider view of what was all involved in putting on a performance.

I learned that each member of the band played a vital role on stage and that the position of the singer would lead to a better performance. If the singer has a central position it is easier to communicate with the crowd to keep them engaged in the performance.

I really struggled with everyone's different view points during rehearsals and from reading research I learned that it is important for everyone to share their ideas and we must learn to accept each other's differences to try and solve things together.

By using my research I was able to guide the band to use movement whilst on stage, this based on research would lead to a better performance with more crowd interaction.

I listened to the music and practised the set list. I took into consideration all the different elements and used this as a guide to create my own drum beats which worked with the original song but allowed me to use my creativity which supported all my band which gave us more variation to have fun with the songs.

I found my place within the band very challenging. I had to find ways to adapt to work positively with others although often found my motivation would fall. I had to lots of experience to share with my band mates but lost my voice/confidence along the way. I think with age and more confidence I could work on developing coping strategies if I ever encountered this again.

I have become a more confident drummer, I have had opportunities to play a variety of genres of music out with my own music taste.

I have made some really good friends during my time on the course.

I have shared skills with others and learned from them. Especially how to communicate confidently.

I know I need to learn to apply myself to things I don't enjoy.

I have become confident in my drumming abilities, I feel equipped to join bands in the future and perhaps enrol on the HND after I have had a short gap year to travel.

The band needs to bounce off each other and ensure they are all having fun. This will help engage the crowd.

Without stage presence the performance will be flat. almost monotone. We want the crowd to have a good time, so we need to be full of energy and excitement!