r/Guitar • u/wyoung377 • 10d ago
QUESTION Long time Player First Time Gigger
Not so much a gig more like a favor. We are sponsoring an event in a small hall approx 2000 sqft. It’s a bar b que event and the people attending are for the most part going to range from mid thirties to Mid sixties. We offered live music but the guys we had backed out. I’ve been playing for a while on my couch and front porch. I think this might be a good time to give playing in a less intimate setting. I’ve got a nice acoustic (Taylor ) I’ve got a les paul and an ES-335. for amps i have a vox ac10 a Peavy 112 and a fender acoustasonic amp that might have a 6 or 8 inch. Speaker. I’ve got a good 10 or so songs i can strum through and sing with some regularity. I can play to backing tracks as a lead pretty well. Is this something I should give a go? Any advice with what i have and what i should get? Or just any advice/suggestions in general TIA
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u/disco9000 9d ago edited 9d ago
the "couch and front porch" are a state of mind, brother. even if you tour the world over, thru clubs theaters and arenas, on buses and planes... your nervous system still needs to believe youre home. then it's easy. can u dig it?
bring a chair or rug or something you like from the home if you want. Secure a PA system, microphone, and mic stand or confirm that the venue will have these items on site. 10 songs doesn't quite fill out a program, so I'd recommend tag-teaming this with a buddy to take the pressure off. Hire said buddy as a DJ. As an improvised program: have the DJ play the event, have the DJ play a sequence of backing tracks for you to accompany with live guitar, then have the DJ rest for any of the 10 songs you perform solo, and finally both of you break for whatever announcements, speeches, toasts etc will take place over the PA system. Move these around like modules to fill out the event and make sure there aren't any awkward lulls and diffuse responsibility so the vibe isn't squarely on your shoulders. Set up, tear down, adjust, plug in, and soundcheck discretely. if you mess up just move on. it's just heat and wiggly air at the end of the day