How much is too much?

[FloridaFrailer]

I've come back to being a gigging musician professionally after about a 15 year absence. I'm in my early 50's and my previous career has kind of left me on the side of the road. Let's just say that the youngsters of today will do the work for a lot less that I am willing. Basically, if I have to work cheap, I'd rather be doing something I love.

 

I have been very conscious of my repertoire and playing style in regards to stamina. I try not to do things that blow my voice out. Presently, I'm playing about 3-4 gigs a week. I don't have much repercussions from doing this and feel it's sustainable. That said, I'm always working on adding more gigs to the schedule.

 

Just wondering....

 

How many gigs are too many for you? Why?

 

Note, I am a solo guitar guy. My playing style (frailer) is designed to be playable even as I get older. It is percussive and a bit simplistic, just for this reason.

 

For you guitar playing solo folk..... which gives out first.... voice or hands?

 

 

[Notes_Norton]

7 nights a week is one too many. Things get to be a blur without that day off. And it doesn't matter which day it is either.

 

I love playing music. It's the most fun I can have with my clothes on.

 

Insights and incites by Notes

[Iowaguy]

 

 

For you guitar playing solo folk..... which gives out first.... voice or hands?

 

 

 

Maybe not exactly what your asking for but here are a few tips from a 70 year old guy that still likes to play once in awhile if anyone will listen:

 

VOICE: I find a headworn mic (Crown CM-311A for me) works well to save my voice and this mic is excellent for avoiding feedback in tight situations.

You can sing with much less volume into a properly set-up headword mic but must learn to "work the mic" differently than a regular mic in order to maintain dynamics. Bottom line is your saving your voice by not working it as hard.

 

Also, the headword mic allows some movement of the head and upper body while singing and this really helps avoid the spine and neck stiffness that holding your head position at a mic for several hours can cause. The head mic also frees you up to run a mixer / effects while singing and mixing yourself from the stage.

 

HANDS: I prefer an electric guitar, when possible, with extra low action and extra light strings. If using acoustic, I've gone to low action and "silk and steel" strings that are very easy on the hands/fingers and still sound good to me on my acoustic/electric guitar. Also, icing your hands/wrists after a long practice or gig will reduce pain and swelling and avoid more serious carpal tunnel symptoms in the long run.

[daddymack]

To answer the OP, over 25 years ago I used to play in a band that did 5 night 'strips' [Tuesday through Saturday] and we learned new material on Sunday...that was draining and unsustainable for more than 9 months. Down time, even when doing what you love, is important, as is family time, etc.

I think you are at a good point if you are gigging 3-5 nights a week as a solo,especially as one approached middle age, and retirement.

 

For me, what goes first is attitude. I have not had issues with my voice giving out [if you ever hear me sing, you'll understand]. I rarely have had issues with my hands except for occasional thumb cramps from playing acoustic for extended periods of time.

 

A question for Iowaguy...what about the breathing?

I tried headset mics years ago, and you are correct about being able to be more mobile, both to move around the stage and relax your neck and shoulders. To me the downsides were relearning proximity dynamics was hard, but controlling my breath intake was the killer. Also if you work in ensemble [like a duo or larger] you can't comment to the other band member 'off mic' during a song, obviously as a solo though that is not an issue.

[Iowaguy]

"A question for Iowaguy...what about the breathing?

..................... controlling my breath intake was the killer."

 

Answer: Good questions, I find that placing the mic to the side and slightly above my mouth greatly reduces Plosives and intake breaths also. I know Crown says directly in front of the lips and "kiss" it- but that's not the way that works for me (sorry Garth).

 

"Also if you work in ensemble [like a duo or larger] you can't comment to the other band member 'off mic' during a song, obviously as a solo though that is not an issue."

 

Answer: I do a duo and trio at times and to communicate with the band (or to cough etc.) I use a momentary foot-switch in the mic line (Rolls MicMute MMII)

[Notes_Norton]

If you sing properly, your voice gets better when you use it more. That calls for proper diaphragm breathing and proper breath support. My voice was best when doing 6 nights a week, 5 hours a night. Better range, better control, more resonance.

 

But if you aren't doing it right, you can hurt your voice by singing too much.

 

Also I take care of my voice. When performing I keep it moist with warm tea (mix of green and oolong) and drink nothing else but warm water until after the gig (no cold drinks, no alcohol).

 

I have a very easy to play guitar with 9/42 strings and so far, so good. Sax is like singing, proper breath support will save the embouchure.

 

If you take care of yourself, most people can sing and play well into 'old age'.

 

Every year or two, I do a volunteer gig at the Veteran's Hospital Nursing Home. There is a guy in his 90s who is confined to a wheelchair but can wail on the piano. It gives me hope.

 

Notes

[daddymack]

hmmm that MicMute sounds interesting, and certainly does manage the issue, but it is another piece of gear to buy, pack and maintain....

https://www.amazon.com/rolls-MS111-Mic-Switch-Off/dp/B001GMXFW6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1465836586&sr=8-1&keywords=mic+mute+switch

 

I found that even with the headset mic pushed to the side, I couldn't kill the intake 'whooosh', but it did work for the plosives.

[Shaster]

I find that the combination of how long the gig is and how many days in a row I gig will determine how I fare. I just did ten gigs over eleven days. the only day I had off, I did back to back rehearsals. During that time I had to learn about twenty-five (plus) Italian songs, all of them pretty complicated (will post in separate thread). Right now, I'm pretty tired and cranky, so yep attitude suffers.

 

As far as the physical, except for the money, I love two hour gigs. because as long as I use backing tracks, my hands and voice never complain. However, twice in the last few weeks I've done a "double shift" - six hours at a hotel. By the end of the fourth set my hands were unhappy so I had to musically manage that situation. No problem with the voice, but four sets, band or solo is enough for me.

 

To sum up, when it comes to the physical, it's the hours in a row not the days in a row. When it comes to my enjoyment of life, a maximum average of five days a week is about right. If in a good month I average anymore then that, it becomes a matter of diminishing returns.

 

[Voltan]

ya gotsta lurnta breathe in from teh opposite side... inhalation from side opposite mic element... i tend to pull my mouth to the intake side, closing off the physical access to my gaping maul... think of it as closing ones mouth and silently reaching for the breath opposite the side of the element.

im using a countryman directional w/foam windscreen... kind of hidden in my moustachio! i suppose that might help with the plosives as well?

wireless... belt worn trx so just hit the standby for coughing, sneezing, leering or cajoling...

[Notes_Norton]

Me? I prefer 3 hour gigs with no breaks (continuous). It seems right for the audiences I play for, and right for my feet which are the only things that seem to get tired on a long gig.

 

Notes

[Idunno]

Hands, voice or focus.

 

The music I choose is to better entertain me than the audience. Instrumentals that push the original song versions to melodic heights that the songs don't achieve is my fun place to be. When I wrap myself into them I feel I'm turning the din into listeners and more often than not they acknowledge it. That's when I'm indestructible. Hands and voice can go on forever when I'm juiced in. Then I will sing songs and that's when I tend to invalidate my respect for them by losing focus. I'm an instrumentalist first and singer of songs a distant second. When I do the latter I tend to drift to that car or house repair, or some other aspect of my life, because my hands are no longer challenged by a song's score and my voice is equally on cruise control. In other words, songs do not engage me as much as instrumentals do and it can trip me up sometimes.

[sventvkg]

I find 4 gigs a week (4hour max) To be the sweet spot. I'm working toward playing one a week within 10 years. High paying corporate gig. Any more gigs unless they are ULTRA EASY corporate, high paying and I don't have to do all the singing affects my attitude..I'm 45 now and have been doing this full time for 25 years, 30 total professionally. Endless gigs for years have taken their toll on me a bit but the voice is still good, hands require a bit of Ibu a week these days and regular chiropractic, weights and losing weight have helped my overall stamina and fitness.

 

The big thing that is getting me this year as it's my 2nd summer since moving back to FL is 4 gigs a week outside in the heat. I REALLY NEVER liked the heat and it's been in the mid 90's. I have a high power blower fan and i'm under some kind of canopy at all of them but it's still really fatiguing. I hope to be able to cut down on the solo acoustic outside gigs by next summer.

[Notes_Norton]

I had joint problems, but went on the arthritis/bursitis diet. Amazing I'm 70 years young and pain free.

 

At it's worse, I couldn't walk two blocks without resting, I avoided the G# note on my tenor, and played guitar with the least amount of use of my previously injured little finger. Now I'm 99.9% cured (a little discomfort once every few months but no pain).

 

My voice is better than ever. I breathe properly and use breath support (as taught to most wind instrument players).

 

My playing/singing partner does the diet and breathes properly and her hands and voice are in top shape too.

 

If interested, I'll share the diet and proper breathing technique.

 

Notes

[daddymack]

Do, please, elucidate me on the arthritis/bursitis diet thing...

the breathing I'm okay on [apparently as I'm still alive ] but if I stop, I'm likely not going to know...

[Notes_Norton]

OK, Arthritis/Bursitis diet.

 

A little background, I had hereditary bursitis in my hip and arthritis settled in two fingers that I injured playing basketball (I quit playing sports when I became a pro musician). I tried everything from glucosamine to MSM to DMSO to Emu oil to sAME and I couldn't walk 3 blocks without resting, I couldn't drive more than a few minutes without a "blue ice" pack behind my hip, and I avoided using the little finger of my left hand.

 

I got this advise from a doctor: I now walk 4 miles a day (in about an hour) including part of it on a 30 degree incline 5 days a week, and I no longer avoid G# on the sax and I don't use "creative" guitar fingerings. The pain is for all practical purposes gone. Every now again, I get a little discomfort in my hip, not enough to be caused pain.

 

OK, here's the diet. It restricts what I eat, but being pain free and no longer a candidate for a hip replacement is worth it.

 

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For both arthritis and bursitis, treatment is similar:

 

Try the dietary approach first, and if that doesn't work, take stronger action.

 

Foods that may contribute to chronic inflammation are foods with a high glycemic index (foods that convert to sugar quickly), such as fruit juices, sugars, simple starches, or rice cakes, foods heavy in polyunsaturated or saturated fats, and foods high in arachidonic acid. Some specific foods to avoid are:

 

* Fatty cuts of red meat (high in saturated fats)

* Organ meats: liver, kidney, and so forth (very high in arachidonic acid)

* Egg yolks (very high in arachidonic acid)

* Poultry - chicken, duck, turkey (very high in arachadonic acid)

* Pasta (high glycemic index)

* Juices (high glycemic index)

* Rice, especially rice cakes (high glycemic index)

* White bread (substitute whole grain breads such as rye or whole wheat)

* Nightshade Plants bother many people (tomatoes, potatoes, eggplants, peppers, paprika)

 

[bob's Note: Nightshades don't bother me, but they do my wife.]

 

Glycemic index charts can be found on the Internet.

 

Better choices are foods with a low glycemic index and foods that are heavy in monounsaturated fats. Some specific good foods are:

 

* Salmon and other fish

* Oatmeal

* Low glycemic fresh fruits and vegetables

* Olives and olive oil

* Peanuts and other nuts

* Whey proteins

 

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My neighbor used to walk her dog, hobbling down the street with a cane. I gave her this diet and in a month she no longer used the cane. It was like a miracle. About 6 months later she was using the cane again and I asked her if the diet quit working. She said she quit the diet because she just couldn't give up her pasta.

 

I don't know about you, but I'd rather give up any food rather than give up my mobility. I don't care how restricting the diet is.

 

Insights and incites by Notes

[Notes_Norton]

We all know how to breathe, but not all of us do it right. If you breathe properly you can sing into your 90s with no problem. --- If not, you can damage your vocal chords.

 

Julie Andrews ("The Sound Of Music" and others) was an improper breather, she got nodules on her vocal chords, went for the operation, and can no longer sing at all. Stevie Nicks is an improper breather and her voice now sounds like a frog. James Brown was a great blues singer with a clear voice in the 50s and early 60s, got nodules and ended up no longer singing well, but sing/talking with that hoarse sound.

 

Proper breathing to keep your voice working:

 

1) When you inhale DO NOT expand your chest. Push your diaphragm down, this will expand your abdomen.

 

2a) When you exhale to sing or play a wind instrument, push the diaphragm back up

 

2b) When exalting tighten the muscles on your abdomen as if you were expecting someone to punch you in the gut - this is breath support. It also makes you able to sing louder, sing without as much strain, gives you better tone, and increases your range. But don't use the tight muscles to exhale, use your diaphragm - the tightened wall of the gut just goes along for the ride.

 

3) Relax your throat. You can sing higher and louder using breath support than tensing your throat. And along with chest breathing, tightening your throat can give you nodules.

 

It takes a little practice, but it's worth it. We regularly sing 4 hour gigs without taking a break, and we used to do 6 nights a week on cruise ships 5 hours per night. When you breathe properly, the more you sing, the better you get, and the more stamina you get. I's like properly exercising any muscle, if you do it right so you don't hurt yourself, the more you do it (to a point) the stronger you get.

 

Insights and incites by Notes

[daddymack]

Thanks, Notes...most of this I already have done due to being recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes...I walk 2.5 to 4 miles a day 7 days a week [when possible; and have for almost 20 years]. I miss pasta and bread, rice and potatoes, but I also want to see my grandkids graduate college...

[Shaster]

My wife can't stand whole wheat pasta, but I don't mind it at all. Unfortunately she likes what I call the 1970's diet. White bread, white rice, white pasta and white sugar. With a little butter thrown in for good measure. I've been trying for years to get her to change her ways because if garbage is around, I will eat it - even if I know I shouldn't.

[Notes_Norton]

The high glycemic foods are only part of the problem. High arachidonic foods are also a culprit. Egg yolks and Fowl being big.

 

I was low carb before this advice from the doc, but giving up chicken, egg yolks, and fatty cuts of beef made all the difference in the world.

 

I no longer heat any poultry, I don't eat egg whites, and the beef I eat is all 100% grass fed (it's leaner and has more omega 3s in the fat).

 

If you haven't given up the high arachidonic foods, you aren't doing the entire diet and it probably won't work for you.

 

I don't eat pasta at all anymore, and I come from an Italian family (all 4 grandparents were born in Italy). My bread is limited to a millet and flax flatbread and occasionally a very high fiber, low glycemic bread.

 

I miss a lot of foods that I gave up, fried chicken, turkey, morning eggs, pizza, pasta, cookies, and so on, but I like walking and being able to play guitar and sax pain free.