worst gig of my life

[K9 Kai Niggemann]

On 20.02.2011, at 06:11, Tony Scharf wrote:

> 2 songs into the set, my Korg M3 died.  Just died.  It turns on, but
> constantly reboots itself.  I had to "play" the rest of the set faking
> it.  And it went downhill from there..

Well I think this raises the important issue of backup plan -- in every live situation. 

In my band, the drummer and I used to jam a bit when the guitarist had broken a string.

in Resonator the accordeonista jams while I reboot, also we usually have more than one synth/sampler to fill in in those times when the computer fails.

But my advice is: when things go wrong, be open about it. We play with a Max MSP quintet (E-B-E.eu) and we often had one or more of the 8 computers crash during or before shows, bringing everything to a grinding halt. It was my task then to speak to the audience, tell them about our "little problem" and take the pressure off those who were rebooting/error tracking.

it just happens everywhere, all of the time. If it happens, let the audience know. I think they appreciate it because it goes to show them that you are actually performing live (something that many people are not sure about with any kind of electronic music...)

but saying all of this rubbish: it really sucks when you are standing in front of the audience, with a feeling that you just peed in your pants and everyone can see it. I feel for you! I've been there too, many times, if that is any condolence..;-)

Kai