I’ve been invited to perform but I’m not as good as a lot of you guys. I’m just so so, but I love creating. I have some tracks that I’ve made that I like quite a bit and was going to try to just do what I usually do when I’m about to record something.
I’m just using a Digitone, Digitakt, a Korg Electribe ESX, Chase Bliss Mood, and a small tuba, because I own one so why not include it?
I don 't want to look silly or like a hack but I’m also 51… so I’m just trying to have fun and not look stupid or do the wrong thing. My game plan is to get there plenty early. Make contact with the host. Watch all the acts and be nice, but also attentive to the performers.
I’ll just be playing tracks that I’ve already done, but then adding a little fun and experimenting along the way. That’s the plan so far.
The two things I’ll say are; confidence in your sound will go a long way to make people taking you serious and enjoy it and, the amount you can learn about yourself and your music from performing is price list and if your not sure your ready, just remember this experience will give you so much to learn from and gain new perspective it’s a win no matter how many people are there or seem interested
I think a good tip is to keep it as minimal as possible for starters. Helps for a quick setup and less chance of things going wrong.
I’ve been to plenty of gigs where people bring their wall of modular, bunch of different machines and then it all takes ages to set up and then something goes wrong with the guy all panicky and the vibe is gone.
Not necessarily what will happen but I’ve seen some awesome gigs where someone just brings a Digitone and goes nuts with it.
-practice
-sound check if at all possible
-be nice to sound engineer if there is one
-acknowledge the audience with a wink and a tip of your cap when you finish a number
51? You are a mere babe, don’t give it another thought. Wear a Santa Claus beard and bring a cane, whatever you need to just own it
I’m 57 and our generation helped invent electronic music in a huge way, it’s every bit your right. And younger people are glad to hear us trust me., especially since you have a gracious and modest attitude.
…run ur setup…run ur setlist…double check ur cabeling, prepare it and stick to it the way as planned out…practice upfront…
only use ur essentials…any gear u don’t need, u don’t really need…
since any added gear is another source that can go wrong…
so keep it strictly as simple as possible…
in best case, from setting ALL up, perform… and pack it ALL back again…
the whole procedure…at least ONCE…
keep ur set short…have one little “encore” in ur backhand…
they will ask for it, if u only play an obvious ending…
don’t get lost in transitions…ur not a dj…ur alive act…
so act as one…
each track can start from some next scratch…contrasts are ur friend…
and so are even short moments of silence…
first ones are great ones…u will surprise urself…
don’t rush…take!..ur!..time!..
enjoy the moment…
Don’t feel like you need to “perform” every element. Let the sequencers do their work, and focus on the other elements that are engaging to you! You’ll have more fun and appear more engaged. Also remember, your sense of spacetime gets squishy. 30 seconds can feel like five minutes when you’re hunting down a cable. You got this!
Remember your MIDI cables
Label your power supplies
Take a couple of long 1/4" cables so you can reach the DI
Rehearse more than you think you need to
Don’t drink two bottles of wine before playing
Number one tip is: have some sort of clock onstage. 5 minutes can feel like 30
Oh and when people come up and say they enjoyed your set, don’t say “Oh no, it was horrible”. Even if you feel super weird just say thankyou.
That last tip is good! Same categorie is to really don’t show stress. Enjoy it, and when things go wrong don’t panic and don’t show it - people will notice it less or pay it less attention when you’re calm about it. Just go enjoy it! And keep the setup simple.
Practice with your setup at home exactly how you want to play live.
Sometimes i practiced just a bit and thought the rest would come naturally when i’m on stage. Like “yeah that sounds cool and then i’ll add a bit of synth noodling for a minute and everything will be fine”. It can work out like that but a lot of times it didn’t.
So keep it simple and maybe record a set at home before.
And most important for me: Have fun on stage! I don’t mean jumping around which can be cool too. But enjoy what you do because people will feel it and respond to it.
I think this is super important, and applies to all compliments. As artists we always want to do and be more so it’s natural to respond that way. But they don’t know what you dream of doing, they aren’t making that comparison. And if you put your own work down, you are putting them down for liking it!
I think there’s a way to respond that is positive but communicates: “thanks, but I can’t wait for you to hear what I’m going to do next, I think you’ll really like that.!”
I think this is important, even just for your own sake. When I played live with bands in my late teens and early 20s I didn’t enjoy it at all. It was just a necessary evil. So when I was preparing to play my first electronic liveset last autumn I made it my first priority to enjoy it. So my advice would be to keep it (relatively) simple and have fun!
don’t listen to your tracks on the day of the live set.
hear them for the first time that day when you perform them live.
they will seem fresher to you, getting you more in the mood, making the performance better for everybody.
Keep it simple, especially the start. Rehearse that the most or make sure all you have to do is press play. It takes time to “warm up”.
Bring extra cables, gaffer tape, a flash light and multi tool. Also useful to have a watch or clock if you have a particular time slot.
Stay relatively sober until you’ve finished.
Rely on muscle memory. Keep your setup as much as possible the same as in rehearsals. Bring your own stand if possible.
Make a set list if you have to, or some simple(!) instructions or hints if you get lost.
Don’t:
Lend anything out that you’re not prepared to lose.
Forget that playing out will feel totally different to playing at home.
Be afraid to make it easy for yourself. I have a long ready made file lined up to play if something goes wrong that I have to fix - or use in a panic situation. I’ve never had to use it yet.
It can work out like that but a lot of times it didn’t.