In Part 1 of this article I talked about how important it is to interact with your audience at your gigs. Read on for my final Tips and those ‘special ingredients’ you can enter into the mix, for a great show…

Tip 2 – Special ingredients – for your interaction. Having seen hundreds of gigs in my time, the ones that are the most enjoyable have been the ones where the audience interaction has had the following ingredients:

Make what ever you say fun – this means being witty, telling funny stories – make a note when funny things happen to you and share them with your audience.

Do your own rendition of someone else’s song – Newton Faulkner did his own rendition of SpongeBob SquarePants – it was hilarious! (get permission for this if necessary – don’t be in breach of any copyright).

Tantalize your audience with a song that you know they like – Newton, again used this tactic with the SquareBob SpongePants song – he said something like, “Do you like SquareBob SpongePants, well I may play it for you later” The audience went crazy…and kept asking for it whenever they could.

If you are in a band – have some banter with all the band members – don’t just leave the audience interaction to the lead singer – in this instance make sure the audience can hear well and don’t go into private jokes – the audience won’t get it! So you could try some kind of light-hearted mickey-taking of each other, but nothing too personal and make sure you don’t actually upset each other!

Some bands like to introduce each individual members and you no doubt have seen them each having a little solo slot with their instruments, during that introduction – you could do this by each playing something funny, but instantly recognizable – such as a TV show theme tune, or a nursery rhyme or a song that everyone knows.

Get an audience to participate in one of your songs – if you can, get them to do some kind of harmonizing – to do this you could split the audience into two halves and start one half singing some particular lyrics to a specific tune – once you have got them going, turn to the other half and get them singing the harmony at the same time.

You may want to create specific hand or arm movements that is unique to your band or act or even for one of your songs – Little Man Tate has done this and at a recent gig, everyone in the audience was making the same movements – this is all part of engaging with your audience.

There are countless ways in which you can have fun with your audience – so get your creative juices flowing and work out what you want to do and when, during your set.

Tip 3 – Practice makes perfect. If you are unsure what will work, practice certain bits at a small low-key gig if you can. Or practice on your trusted ‘street team’ or your family and friends – they will let you know if your banter or other interaction works or not.

A further tip is to make sure that when you do it for real – make it look or sound as spontaneous as you can – your audience will want to feel special – so if it sounds too rehearsed you may lose the fun element of it. So, it’s about getting the balance right.

I hope this article has been helpful to you. If you have difficulties in interacting with your audience or indeed you suffer with stage fright and even the thought of going on stage gets you nervous, feel free to email to arrange a free consultation call, when we can discuss how I can help you. lindsey@bravura-group.com

Lindsey Benton runs her own coaching and mentoring business, Bravura, for musicians and non-performers in the music industry. Lindsey helps her clients work through solutions to succeed in their music career and life. Lindsey writes a monthly newsletter for musicians to give insight and helpful tips to make positive advancement in their music careers. Check out http://www.bravura-group.com to view coaching packages, reports and the newsletter.

For more education on careers in the music industry, check out: http://www.music-career-guide.com

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Music is a universal language that anyone can understand. Since ancient times, humans have intuitively understood the benefits of music — it was even thought that music had healing powers. Our ancestors were right. To this day, music is still used as a form of therapy. Music therapists are being employed by hospitals, schools, day care facilities, and nursing homes.

Why would someone employ a music therapist in this age of CD players and iPods? Because music therapists possess more than just the ability to play music. They have been trained to understand the psychological benefits of music and how it can be used to overcome learning disabilities, improve motor skills, relieve pain, and reduce fear. The best music therapists know how to assess the needs of the individual and tailor the musical therapy accordingly.

The emotional and physical benefits of music are widely acknowledged even in scientific circles. Studies have proven that music can lower blood pressure and reduce stress.

Music can help a child’s development. A three month study on groups of children ages 4 to 6 revealed that children who received musical therapy had noticeably better speaking and listening skills. There was even an improvement in hand-eye coordination.

A music therapist needs musical skills as well as counseling and health care knowledge. A music therapist will need to be able to interact with children and people with disabilities. To pursue a career in music therapy, you will need a college degree in music therapy. The Certification Board for Music Therapists approves music therapy curricula taught in colleges.

If you’re musically inclined and love the idea of sharing music with others who could benefit from it, a career in music therapy might be for you.

For more education on careers in the music industry, check out: www.Music-Career-Guide.com

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