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Re: Sit or Stand? Guitarist and Bassists only



At 05:49 PM 2/20/2005, Gary Lehmann wrote:
>Now that the traffic has died down, time to clutter your mailbox again 8)
>with a poll of the looping string players: how many sit and how many 
>stand?

Interesting, I always meant to comment about this after these various loop 
festivals.

Having watched many looper guitarists perform, I really, really think many 
of you need to learn to play standing up. Guitarists sitting down almost 
always look very lame. They have less stage presence, less energy, and 
less 
connection with the audience than guitarists standing up. Especially if 
you 
sit in a crappy looking chair instead of a stool, and do the big 
flappy-foot, legs-spread style of toe tapping. ugh.

The only two people I've seen pull it off sitting down were Matthias Grob 
and Steve Lawson, and I think it is because they are both very tall, have 
good posture, and have the stage experience to engage the audience anyway.

There are only three contexts where I think guitarists look ok sitting 
during a performance: a) big band jazz (at the end of the sax line), b) 
classical (with a stool), and c) when they have some apparent physical 
hardship (like being a 97 year old blind blues player).

Yes, I know. It is hard to tap the buttons while standing. But if Andre 
LaFosse can do his thing standing up, you can learn to do it too. He taps 
buttons a thousand times more often than you. Practice standing up, and 
you 
will be fine.

Oh, and while we are at it: The ugly rack of gear. I'm really tired of 
being in the audience and watching a performance by the back of an ugly 
rack of gear. You have a big tangle of ugly cables all spilling out, and 
your head barely poking up over the top. Most of your racks do not have 
good stage presence. Move the rack somewhere to the side or behind you. 
Buy 
some interesting cloth to put over it. Let the audience see you. Let them 
see you push the buttons and turn the knobs. Let them see the blinky 
lights 
instead of the back. Hide the cables. It will really really help.

kim


______________________________________________________________________
Kim Flint                     | Looper's Delight
kflint@loopers-delight.com    | http://www.loopers-delight.com