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Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! >
Busking - A reflection in humanity
Busking - A reflection in humanity
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gad wagon
22 posts
Sep 15, 2012
12:48 PM
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Long story short... I attempted busking for the first time today in in a tunnel of sorts here in Rome. Acoustics were great. New, battery operated amp sounded amazing. I got a great rush of adrenaline. I pulled off some cool licks with the harmonica and guitar using my loops station. I felt like a kid in a candy shop.
What did I learn?
1) a few short licks that sound awesome may be just that... but in busking... they wear out quickly.
2) I have to really spend time in the woodshed actually learning complete songs, and not just bits of some.
3) You could play like crap, but if you are having fun, and the passer-bys see that, they have fun too. If they see you being hard on yourself.... they will be hard on you too.
4) Kids love it, especially when you take the half a second to recognize that they appreciate that you are being a kid.
5) Simply wailing uncontrollably sounds like garbage, while simple melodies draw attention.
6) If you do not have someone's attention in the first 7 seconds of the song, they will not hang around.
7) Humility is a great virtue that stings initially, but is truly sweet once you've swallowed your pride and realized the blessing.
8) Have fun... that is all that matters.
9) D minor is a super fun key to play in: Chromo in 3rd, C harp in 3rd.
Comments? Input?
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-- "The task of the modern educator is not to cut down jungles but to irrigate deserts" -- C.S. Lewis
http://www.youtube.com/user/gadwagon/videos
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thescip
13 posts
Sep 15, 2012
2:41 PM
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I have wanted to but never done it. More out of a lack of opportunity than anything else. Good tips. Keep at it.
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STME58
239 posts
Sep 15, 2012
2:56 PM
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Hello gadwagon,
I can't say I've done busking as I haven't got up the courage to put a hat out, but when I play in public I see some of the same things you have observed, especially about the kids.
AS you stated, there is something to simple well known melodies. I have noticed, If I play "Over the Rainbow", someone will sing along. What melodies did you notice gat a strong response?
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BronzeWailer
795 posts
Sep 15, 2012
4:22 PM
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Congrats gad wagon! Your observations sound spot on, based on my experience.
Busking has changed my life. I'm not kidding.
Part of it is the people you meet.
I met one of my guitar guys on the street, another guitarist for a bluegrass band who 'adopted' me and gave me a standing invitation to sit in with them, as well as some beautiful young poets who invited me to join their collective (I did), drunk lost souls who wallowed in sad songs for a while, dancing girls (amateur and pro), an aboriginal guy who gave me permission to climb Uluru (Ayers Rock), and just ordinary people who were glad to hear music where they hadn't expected to.
I have been doing it for a year and a half now and am fully hooked.
You do need to learn songs. Busking is good motivation to nail those songs and not just have a few licks.
People respond to danceability, familiarity, and sincerity. I am not the best player by a long shot, but better than silence. A simple calculation. If you get 1% better every time you go out, you'll be twice as good after a hundred outings. I reckon if I do this for a few more years I should get pretty good. It is always gratifying when people say 'thank you' (almost but not quite, as good as a tip). In my experience, 95% of interactions are positive. There is a malcontent minority who will be unhappy. You can't save them. Best to ignore them.
Some times you will be playing your heart out and there are no reactions. This is what I call 'character building' and a great chance to practice. Perversely, wailing a sad/angry song at this time may change the atmosphere and draw a reaction.
A few people have commented that they had never heard the harmonica played properly before.
Things you might think are easy or simple have a surprising impact sometimes. Amazing Grace touches a lot of people.
A few songs I like to play that people like to hear: Hoochie Coochie Man, Crossroads, Key to the Highway, Nine Below Zero, Gettin' Out of Town, You've Got to Move.
I believe if everyone gets out and starts playing the blues it will raise awareness of and create demand for our music. Preaching!
BTW, I used to be extremely shy, but busking has made me more conifdent and open. I still have a slight moment of discomfort when transitioning between Joe Citizen and The Busker, but it's getting easier.
My two cents' worth.
Anyone who's thinking about it: just go for it!
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Komuso
43 posts
Sep 15, 2012
5:29 PM
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Busking is a fantastic learning and performance experience, and I totally agree with Gad/Bronze.
I've done it quite a bit in the past, including nearly a year on Las Ramblas in Barcelona in the early 90's. The Spanish, guitar fiends that they are, we're wonderfully forgiving of my playing "style" and I managed to earn enough each day to eat/drink/rent. Survival by sweat I called it. If you're not sweating, you're not playing. I don't mean just physically energetic sweating from thrashing your instruments, but when your whole body is involved musically, you sweat.
The street crowd knows instantly if your going through the motions or truly playing, and it can make a big difference to the hat income. It's a performance space, not a practice space.
The dynamics of the street or pitch space are really interesting too. Competing for the best time slots and locations, your hat tactics to encourage the tips, your crowd analysis as you're playing, easing into the local scene, keeping relations with the locals ... And watching for cops.
I was playing electric slide and rack harp, but I was also using one of the first Zoom portable digi fx units with a small peavey amp on rechargeable battery. The zoom gave me a wider sound palette to play with, and people didn't Seem to mind some experimental sounds at the time. Nowdays is bit different as it's common. I'm also still playing the same guitar I used then, a Hohner G3T headless - and a couple of years ago Hohner sent me a complete new bridge replacement from Germany - for free! Great service!
I've also busked other places with varying degrees of success.
Green park tunnel in London had great acoustics!
I also did Alice Springs mall and Scotty's Bar for a few months once, after we did a Simpson desert crossing and the motor in our 4wd finally blew out. My mate was playing rhythm on a collection of discarded billy cans and an old teapot we'd found along the way, and I was bashing a silver dobro with rack harp. I can't say it was particulary good, but I'm sure we sounded different! That was more paid in Bourbon, but if I remember we drank a lot of it.
A lot of the online gigs in virtual worlds I consider almost as virtual busking, and some of the same performance rules apply.
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Paul Cohen aka Komuso Tokugawa
HarpNinja - Your harmonica Mojo Dojo
Bringing the Boogie to the Bitstream
Last Edited by on Sep 15, 2012 6:51 PM
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gad wagon
24 posts
Sep 15, 2012
9:56 PM
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@STME58 - Guess I should have been more clear about the melodies. I should have used the word "riff" instead. The simple riffs done well sound a lot better than a technical riff done poorly. At one point though, I actually played a bluesy "Flinstones" thing that was a ton of fun... but I don't think the Romans recognized it.
@ Bronze and Komuso - thanks for the personal reflections. It is good to hear other's personal experiences. Thanks for the words of advice and encouragement. I'll try to get a video next time I'm out. Now... to the shed!
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-- "The task of the modern educator is not to cut down jungles but to irrigate deserts" -- C.S. Lewis
http://www.youtube.com/user/gadwagon/videos
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2chops
94 posts
Sep 16, 2012
4:46 AM
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Gad...Something else to keep in mind about busking, or "nasking, (playing out w/o asking for $)...
1. Everyone who walks by will find you a bit inspirational simply because you've mustered up the courage to play in public. By yourself. Regardless of your level of technical ability.
2. Don't get too hung up on your current level of said technical ability. Have fun. This is your time to share a passion you have with others. They will pick up on that and groove.
Go have a ball.
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You Tube = goshinjk
I'm workin on it. I'm workin on it.
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Steamrollin Stan
559 posts
Sep 16, 2012
5:00 AM
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I'm still hiding in me garage/woodshed.........tee hee!!!
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jbone
1057 posts
Sep 16, 2012
9:13 AM
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you guys have hit the nail on the head here. mostly what i've seen on this topic- here and other forums- has been newcomers or some who were discouraged in their early attempts to busk.
wife Jolene and i have busked for a few years now whenever the weather is right. we play on the street downtown with permission from a store owner or pay a small permit fee for a day pass at a farmers' market.
we play all acoustic mostly since we like to travel very light and noise ordinances are against amps etc. but notably we have played on Cherry St. in Helena during the King Biscuit Blues Fest, and last year got to play amped there to help fund a blues foundation. either way is cool with us.
knowing songs is vital. that said i knew a guy who could play nearly any theme song from 60's/70's tv shows and every Christmas song you could name, and he made out very well at malls and on the street. personally i like blues and roots for the most part.
Jolene and i have a few youtube videos, none of which are actually on the street but they give a good idea of what and how we do. we keep it as simple as possible and just really blow it out for the passersby, some of whom will stop to listen, dance, contribute, or clap and shout. it depends on the moment and the mood we help create.
there is such a wonderful energy outdoors away from established venues and rules. nobody tells us what to play, how long, when to start and finish. if we make a mistake we either ignore it or laugh but always carry on through the song. she covers me and i cover her. it's no big deal unless we make it one, which an audience can read and will walk away from. as long as we keep on focus everything is great.
we don't make huge money at this, i have a day job anyway and i think it would be difficult to "have to" sing for our supper, but when we do get out it's a great positive occasion.
choice of material makes a difference as well. we do happy, sad, cool, hot, cold, long, and short. sometimes you want to keep things upbeat especially for the kids and especially if people are dancing at all. other times we slow it down and go deep and sincere like a funeral dirge. it's all so real.
it's an opportunity to sell our latest cd. it's a chance to occasionally jam with other musicians. we've had kids hang out and i will give them a harp or a demo cd and try to encourage them to be a part of, maybe planting a seed for growing a future musician. we never know who we may inspire, and to us that's the real gold.
i would say be aware of local laws and regulations and work within them or find a way around them if necessary. it's always a good idea to get on the good side of vendors and small business owners like a hot dog cart or vegetable stand and ally yourself with them. learn at least 10 songs and add more as you go. singing is a total plus. be aware that if you play harp too loudly you risk wrecking a reed. play loud enough that people will hear a bit and those who want to will then come closer! i keep extra harps for if i blow one out and even a couple to give away.
it's a scary idea at first but once you relax a bit and the first note is struck, you fall into the coolest groove.
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http://www.reverbnation.com/jawboneandjolene
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000386839482
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wa7La7yYYeE
Last Edited by on Sep 16, 2012 8:16 PM
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Martin
143 posts
Sep 16, 2012
10:24 AM
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Where was this in Rome? In the centro storico?
I´ve noticed a conspicuous absence of buskers in Rome (been there many times) and I´ve alost come to believe it´s forbidden, at least in the center. But glad if I´m wrong
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STME58
241 posts
Sep 16, 2012
7:35 PM
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jbone,
I was thinking about your commet about the TV tunes and realized they are probably quite good for busking. They were designed to get your attention quickly and draw you in, exactly what a busker needs to do. When you go back a few years you add a nostalga component that will draw a particular age of audiance. I may just work up a few.
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nacoran
6095 posts
Sep 16, 2012
8:12 PM
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I'm pretty good at picking out melodies I knew as a kid, so I know quite a few Christmas carols and TV theme songs. For some reason one of the simpler ones keeps messing with me. I can play enough M*A*S*H, Brady Bunch, and Mork & Mindy, Star Wars, Battlestar Gallactica, Sanford and Son, and Lone Ranger, even if I don't have the whole arrangements down, for people to recognize, but for the life of me I can't get a decent Gilligan's Island. It's not a hard melody, but my brain just stops working.
The other day I was parked in the park playing. A couple ladies came by and were getting into their car. I was playing some blues and they didn't seem to be into it. They got into their car. I looked at their bumper stickers and they seemed to be the PBS sort so I played Rondeau and opened their door just so they could smile and let me know they were Masterpiece Theater fans. The theme song lays out pretty easily in first position. Show tunes go over pretty well at open mics. You have a lot of people who did musicals in high school there. It's pretty funny for a big guy like me to get up on stage, take a deep breath and start playing 'I feel pretty'.
Developmentally, I'm not sure why I can pick off tunes I knew well as a kid so much easier than songs I've learned later in life. Anyone else get that?
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jbone
1058 posts
Sep 16, 2012
8:29 PM
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i've just never pursued tv themes myself. i think i was sturck by the blues from an early age and always looked to express in that vein more than most other veins. instead of the more commercial, we do stuff like Jimmy Reed, Joe turner, RJ, Bo Diddley, Johnny Cash, Dylan, Hank Williams, and these plus a few more are recognized by a lot of people. the funny thing about music and memory is, if a person heard something once on a movie sound track, tv show, or the radio or at a party, they tend to relate when they hear that out live. so even going to Memphis Minnie, Big Mama Thornton, and some of the lesser known musicians we like to cover, there is a recognition factor. and with kids, it's totally about the natural response a body has to a particular rhythm and sound. one of the absolute most precious memories we have is of a wheelchair bound little boy who sat and listened and was rapt by our sound, and he boogied to Jimmy Reed even though he was strapped in a wheelchair. he and his folks stuck with us for several songs and no money changed hands, yet we felt such a connection, who knows but what that kid may end up a pianist or guitarist in his own right?
spiritual and gospel songs are another rich vein to delve into. considering that a lot of early country and blues music was modeled partly on those materials it's not a far stretch.
we also have used the street to help us work out original material. after all, who's going to know? and if we get a good response that's encouraging, if not it's back to the drawing board.
very seldom have we had a bad experience busking. we once had 2 cops very apologetically ask us to move along. we had some street guys mess with us a time or 2 but since i've quit smoking it seems that we're not so popular with the homeless crowd.
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http://www.reverbnation.com/jawboneandjolene
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000386839482
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wa7La7yYYeE
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Aussiesucker
1191 posts
Sep 16, 2012
8:54 PM
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gad wagon> great story. I concur that episodes at busking gives one a great insight into human nature. Fortunately I'm a tune player with an extensive repertoire, not saying I'm good, but I am comfortable playing anywhere largely due to my stint at busking. With a constantly changing audience the need for a big repertoire isn't necessary but some well chosen traditional, folk, pop or country tunes that are recognizable by most people is a good start.
I had my first go at busking ca 5 years ago. I have not done much busking but I then saw it as an opportunity to play in public & settle the nerves. It also allowed my wife at home to enjoy some peace whilst I was out getting paid for practice. Payment wasn't exciting ca $10 an hour but a lot more than I got at home practicing in front of a computer screen.
On the human front I wasn't busking for the money & in fact the people who threw money into my tip bucket all looked as though they needed the money a lot more than I.
I would love to do a lot more busking but our crazy local gov laws prohibit the use of any form of amplification. In a busy city street with a sax player 10m away on one side and a guy on a squeezebox on the other it is nigh on impossible for a harmonica to be heard.I have since found other outlets for my music.
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HARPOLDIE’S YOUTUBE
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STME58
242 posts
Sep 16, 2012
8:53 PM
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I find I can easily work out songs I sang as a kid. Most of these are hymns and church chorus'. I can play them easily even though I have not sung them for years.
My wife has worked as a hospice Chaplian. On "non-responsive" patients, she would research their history and sing or play them songs they were likely to have heard as a child. She would usually get some kind of a response, a squeeze of the hand, a nod of the head, something to let her know she had connected..
Last Edited by on Sep 16, 2012 8:55 PM
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Komuso
44 posts
Sep 16, 2012
9:30 PM
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@STME58
Your wife is right on the money there.
Some great research is being done on music therapy for Alzheimers/Dememtia patients.
For Elders With Dementia, Musical Awakenings
Familiar music arouses coma patients
Even Patients with Severe Dementia Respond to Music
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Paul Cohen aka Komuso Tokugawa
HarpNinja - Your harmonica Mojo Dojo
Bringing the Boogie to the Bitstream
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