Live Music

How can you change how a person hears a song that you are playing live? If you play a song by counting it off and playing it exactly the way that it is on the recording, then the person who is hearing it is still retaining their original perception of that song. When they hear it, they are relating it to all the other times that they heard the song in the past. This can be comfortable and familiar to the listener. It can also be boring and predictable at the same time. Different listeners are going to have different relationships with the same song.

There can, however, be simple and subtle ways to introduce the song in a way that make the song your own without changing the original song too much. One example of this is to use an introduction for the song that leads into the beginning of the song. This uses something that is unfamiliar, yet pleasing, to the listener, to set up a familiar song. If you do it correctly, it can make the listener hear the song in a new way because you added an intro that complimented the song. When the original song drops in or blends in, and the listener recognizes the song, it can create a moment in the listeners musical mind that is exciting. Another subtle way to change a song to make it more interesting is to try not to sing it exactly like the original singer on the recording. Use your own singing voice, and your own genuine emotion to present the song. This can backfire if the listener does not like your interpretation, but it can also make a listener take notice of a song that they may not of taken notice of before. Then, maybe the next time they hear the song on the radio, they will appreciate it more because they relate it to the experience of hearing you do it.

There are also ways to rework a song that are not subtle, but drastic, that can also make the listener take notice. There are lots of examples of this in reggae music. Lots of times, a reggae band will take a song that is rock, doowop, soul, etc... and change the feel of it to a reggae feel. This can be very effective in making the listener hear the song in a different way. Another example would be to blend two song together, or "mashup" two songs. This would be when you find two songs that have similar feels, melodies, or grooves, and essentially playing them at the same time. Maybe singing the verse of one song while playing the groove of another song. There are plenty of ways to do this. Wikipedia gives the following definitions for mashup. "A mashup, bootleg or blend[1] (also mash up and mash-up) is a song or composition created by blending two or more songs, usually by overlaying the vocal track of one song seamlessly over the music track of another.[2] To the extent that such works are 'transformative' of original content, they may find protection from copyright claims under the "fair use" doctrine of copyright law.[3]". There is even a video game called "DJ Hero" where you create your own mashup. In doing this, you can present the song in a whole new way, that creates a new context for the song. This can also be exciting for the listener, but it can also, in some listeners musical minds, not be effective at all. It is all subjective.

The most effective way to increase a listeners enjoyment is to have fun, try to make the other musicians have a good time, and make the audience have a good time.