On April 27 2002, a small band of DADGADers got together to discuss stage presence and use of sound equipment. This was an opportunity for beginning and experienced musicians alike to share their questions, concerns, performance tips, and experiences, as well as to listen and learn from each other—all in the hopes of strengthening their on-stage presence, sensitivity to audience needs, and use of sound equipment. What follows is an article based on our discussion—too rich to keep to ourselves!

WHY PERFORM?
The group, directly and indirectly, discussed the most burning question: Why perform? It takes a lot of courage and some amount of ego to step on the stage in the first place. Yet, despite the knocking of knees, the quivering of hands, the tunneling of vision, and the feeling that something has sucked the wind out of our lungs, we still do it. Each person has their own, deeply personal reasons for performing. Some of these as diverse as the people in the group. Yet, at least two of these reasons seemed universal: communication and community.

SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIPS
Performers and audience members have a symbiotic relationship. When performers step out of their living rooms and on to the stage, the audience is right there with them, too. Those few moments before the performance starts are ripe with anticipation. What will the performer have to say? How will it be communicated? How will the performance be received? What will the performer learn from the audience? What will the audience learn from the performer? Magic happens when the performer breathes in and the audience breathes back. Performers push through the fear, the insecurity, and the nervousness in hopes of enhancing their own lives and those of the audience. Each song, each poem, each story captures a moment of human emotion to be expressed by the performer and interpreted by the audience. A good performance envelops everyone in the room, expands their own perimeters, and moves everyone forward, sometimes a little, sometimes a lot, on the journey of life. A good performance reminds us all that we are part of a community.

KEEPING THE AUDIENCE
Keeping the audience, in part, means challenging the mythology each of us has about what a performer is or is not. We think of our favorite performer, fantasize in our living rooms that we are just like them, practice a song or two, scrunch up enough courage to sign up at the coffeehouse, but when our names are called, when that name becomes our name, something inside us breaks the spell and we know, we KNOW, that fantasy and reality are two separate things. In those pre-performance moments, everything practiced seems forgotten. Everything familiar seems strange and surreal. There’s getting on stage without tripping, deciding whether to stand or sit and where to put the microphones. There’s hoping that the guitar is tuned and remembering the words and how the chords are shaped and feeling the lump in your throat get so big you wonder if you’ll ever be able to breathe again. So, with all this going on how does a performer even have space to think about the audience?

BE YOURSELF
Remembering this is a symbiotic relationship helps performers get past the nerves and on to one of the most important things: the audience recognizes and responds to you being yourself. They don’t want performers pretending to be something or someone they are not. They come to the coffeehouse month after month because they want to be part of something special and unique. They come to see people opening themselves up, sharing their personal perspective and talents, taking risks and honing their craft. In short, the audience is on your side: they want you to do your best (whatever that is on any given night).

BE PURPOSEFUL
Having an idea of what you are trying to express helps bring definition and clarity to a performance. Randomness and spontaneity are not the same things. Lack of focus breaks that audience-performer spell. Talking too long or sharing irrelevant personal histories, taking too long to tune instruments (or waiting until you’re on stage to tune), and making apologies all are behaviors which break the spell. Be ready when your name is called, have your instrument in hand and tuned, know what you are going to perform, become focused, know why you are stepping on to the stage and let the audience know you know by being purposeful.

VARY YOUR SET
Choose pieces that are varied in rhythm, tempo, and style. Add excitement and interest to your set by "breaking things up" a bit. Back-to-back slow pieces or sad pieces or long-winded pieces lull the audience to sleep (or to the kitchen to snarf down brownies). Adding humor, upbeat pacing, and unusual rhythms keeps the audience awake and engaged.

EYE CONTACT
Audience members respond to performers who make eye contact. It’s another way of opening yourself up, expanding your perimeters, and letting the audience know you trust them enough to let them in. It takes courage, but the pay-off is that your audience will feel more involved with the performance if you let them in.

SAY "THANK YOU"
Saying "thank you" sends a strong message to an audience that you appreciate their time and support, and that you do not take them for granted.

PERFORMER'S NEEDS
We started with audience needs, because, without them there is no performance. But, what of the performer’s needs? Does wanting to be on stage, wanting the spotlight, wanting an audience mean our egos are getting in the way? Certainly, stepping out of our living rooms and on to the stage takes some amount of ego. We wouldn’t do it, time after time, if we weren’t getting something out of it. If feeding our ego helps us feel confident enough and courageous enough to perform in front of an audience, to share our heart and souls, then that’s the path to follow. It’s when the focus of a performer turns completely inward that the performance breaks down. Remember, this is a symbiotic relationship. A performer can be into a piece, perhaps even be the piece without locking out the audience. Locking out the audience comes across as egotistical and is definitely a spell-breaker when it comes to that performer-audience magic. There’s a balancing act to be had. A confident performer keeps the audience wishing for more. An egotistical performer keeps the audience wishing for a trap door to open up in the middle of the stage.
Performing is complicated. This, perhaps, comes as a surprise to most beginning performers because the people we’ve looked to as role models—the professional guitarists, singers, storytellers, poets—make it look so darn easy. Watching and listening to them somehow makes us believe we can be just as good or better and, perhaps, we are not wrong. So, we challenge ourselves to learn our craft.

LEARNING OUR CRAFT
Performing in front of an audience on stage is not the same as being in our living rooms, but there are some things we can do at home to prepare ourselves for the stage. Practice in front of a mirror with something in front of your face to simulate a microphone. Get used to the feel and proximity of the equipment. Check your posture. Make eye contact. Practice the piece until you are so comfortable with it that you don’t have to think about it. Practice with the television on to reduce your reaction to noises. Tape record your piece to make sure it’s how you’d like it to be presented. Enunciate (unless you purposely wish to deemphasize lyric clarity). Ask someone for constructive feedback.

MAKING MISTAKES
Making mistakes builds character. Making mistakes is character. When practicing, pay attention to mistakes. These can lead you into rhythms or chord progressions or some type of word play you might not otherwise try. When mistakes happen on stage make light of it, keep going, and don’t panic. Half the time, the audience doesn’t know you’ve made a mistake. The other half of the time, they don’t particularly care if you are doing your best. Don’t let mistakes keep you from stepping on to the stage.

FORGETTING LYRICS
Every musician in the group has forgotten the lyrics. The number one suggestion: practice the lyrics at home until they become automated. Just as there’s finger memory, there’s "lyric memory"—the place in your brain and body that just knows the piece inside and out. But, here are some more tricks that people use when the lyrics slip away and the mind goes blank: sing "I’ve forgotten the lyrics to this song" in place of the real words, replace real words with consonant/vowel pairs (da da, doo-be-do), hum, play an instrumental, use humor, breathe deeply, smile, do anything to help yourself become relaxed again.

USING THE EQUIPMENT
Just as all other components of performing, using the microphones and equipment takes some practice. Here’s where the sound people can help you out. At the DADGAD, the sound people (usually Jerry Lund and Dennis Harrington) want to help make you as comfortable as you can be on stage. Stand or sit in the place that makes you feel comfortable, and they’ll adjust the microphones for you. If you need a chair or stool, don’t be afraid to ask for it. Same goes for a music stand or other piece of equipment that will help you out. Check to see if the monitors are adjusted in the way you like. Is there enough vocal? Is there enough guitar? Is there feedback? Do a quick sound check. Speak into the microphone, play a few chords. Give the sound people a minute to check and adjust the levels. Remember to position yourself as you would when you start your piece. Keep your head still. Be intimate with the microphone: don’t shrink away from it.

WRAPPING IT UP
Response from this, the first DADGAD sponsored workshop, was tremendously positive and motivating. The good-natured ribbing that occurred during the open mic performances later in the evening showed that people were, indeed, opening up, taking risks, and learning from each other. The time flew in the workshop, the discussion was relevant and lively. It left us with more questions than answers. More workshops will be planned in the future. If you have particular questions about this article, the workshop, the Acoustic Guitar articles that follow or have ideas for future workshops, please contact us.

Additional reading: Getting Ready to Perform and Working the Room by Kristina Olson