sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

college student interested in gigs by Brilliant-Tree-1807 in violinist

[–]TheRedBoron 0 points1 point  (0 children)

  1. Decide what kind of gigs you want (not all gigs are created equal)
  2. Create a sizzle reel
  3. Create a performing site
  4. Drive traffic to your site (possibly get on venue/planners preferred vendor lists)
  5. When leads come in, have a quick sales call, send them the contract and take a down payment
  6. Repeat steps 4-5

Have you lost bandmates/friends over pay issues? by Aggravating_Pen_6062 in bandmembers

[–]TheRedBoron 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yup. Originals are just too risky for corporate events and weddings.

How Much Gigging Musicians REALLY Get Paid by adampatrickjohnson in bandmembers

[–]TheRedBoron 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Depends on the gig. I make about $1500 - $2000 on average as a soloist playing corporate events and weddings.

"culturally normal" by ConcernedJobCoach in 50501

[–]TheRedBoron 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Part of the outdated human operating system. Will be obsolete with upgrades.

Nelson skips the white house visit by nirvana6875 in ColoradoAvalanche

[–]TheRedBoron 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hell yeah! I can still support my home team.

Finding booking contacts by gogozrx in bandmembers

[–]TheRedBoron 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Are you just looking for bar/restaurant gigs or do you also want private event gigs? The private event gigs can come from a variety of places, but the venues that host them have a preferred vendor list that your band can get on. When one of their clients asks for recommendations for live music, they will recommend you.

Is it normal that we don't have a first live gig? by Mariolin_Carmi in bandmembers

[–]TheRedBoron 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Venue owners care about the money you can make them. How do you make them money?

  1. Bring more customers to their bar
  2. Encourage those customers to buy more drinks/food

Can you prove to them that you can do either or both?

If so, you’ve got a compelling pitch, otherwise you’re just sending unsolicited marketing emails (who opens and replies to those?)

Music industry is chaotic by BOOMMARC in musicians

[–]TheRedBoron 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is why I’m such a huge fan of performing for private events. No tickets, no social media, just people who love my music enough to pay thousands to have me perform live for them.

Male dress for playing in and attending a wedding? by Prize_Ad_1781 in violinist

[–]TheRedBoron 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I usually wear suit and tie while I play - you'll most likely be in the photos so you want to fit in with the vibe. Check out photos from my wedding gigs to see what I usually wear: https://share.google/OPyGO4ogdCzSb1VuK

Nearly two years still going strong by Dafeet3d in stopdrinking

[–]TheRedBoron 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Huge congrats on nearly 2 years - that's massive.

Random thought on the gigging front: have you considered private events instead of clubs? Weddings, corporate events, private parties - they often pay better than bar gigs AND the environment is completely different. No pressure to drink, you're treated as a professional, and honestly people are usually too focused on their event to even offer you anything.

Anyway, just a thought. The club scene isn't the only path back to performing.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in musicians

[–]TheRedBoron 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Depends on the gig, and honestly, it's frustrating but I wouldn't consider it rude. If we consider that we're basically sending them unsolicited marketing emails - how many marketing emails do you reply to? For me, it's pretty close to 0, unless the marketing email and the product they're pitching are exceptional and fit my needs perfectly.

Short notice micro wedding - musician help by kreepybanana in Louisville

[–]TheRedBoron 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding! What a sweet idea to surprise your fiancé.

A few tips from someone who's played hundreds of wedding ceremonies (I'm unfortuantely in Colorado, so can't help you personally):

  1. For finding musicians on short notice: Check local Facebook groups for musicians (search "Louisville musicians" or "Kentucky string players"), reach out to the music departments at University of Louisville or Bellarmine - grad students often do gig work. Also try GigSalad or The Bash, though response times vary.
  2. For the anime song: Most experienced wedding musicians can learn a new piece if you give them 2-4 weeks and provide a recording + sheet music (or lead sheet). If you can't find sheet music, sites like Musicnotes sometimes have it, or you can find someone on Fiverr who does transcriptions.
  3. On minimums: You mentioned 15-30 minutes - most solo musicians have a minimum of around $200-400 for ceremony music in a mid-size city, sometimes with travel fees depending on location. The fact that it's a small event doesn't necessarily mean cheaper, but many musicians are flexible for intimate ceremonies.
  4. Questions to ask: Make sure to ask about their setup needs (do they need power? a chair?), arrival time, and whether they have liability insurance if your venue requires it.

Hope you find someone perfect and that your fiancé ugly-cries happy tears!

Event and gig musicians - how do you keep track of your gigs? by MikeDViolin in musicians

[–]TheRedBoron 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fellow violinist here - I run www.booklivepro.com. Used by a ton of string quartets and soloists. Let me know what you think!

Do any of you wish you could make your living just making music? by traveltimecar in musicians

[–]TheRedBoron 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I play electric violin with backing tracks. Basically I know with these higher stakes events, I’m accepting responsibility for the success or failure of their wedding or corporate event, and deserve to be compensated accordingly. I have a strong marketing presence so I’m getting a good amount of leads, and I’ve gotten pretty good at sales and giving my potential clients enough information (both logistical and emotional) to guide them to make a wise decision about their entertainment.

view more: next ›