The conventional wisdom is to start the night with an upbeat song, not a slow ballad, but not to waste a strong banger this early. Let'em know that you are here! That is easy to say, but quite a balancing act. Maybe I would understand better if we created a list of songs that are upbeat and strong, but not wasted in the warm-up. I haven't tried it with audiences, but my guess is 1. I've just seen a face - Beatles

This isn’t a “which is better?” thread. Rather I’m finding being a piano bar/lounge player and not a guitar solo act has its pros and cons. On the Pro side: 1. The biggest is I’m not in direct competition with guitar acts who seem to be the large majority in my area. My act alone differentiates me. 2. My set list include different songs since many songs adapt better to piano or to guitar (also a con as I detail below). 3. Having a grand piano shell can make an event feel classy. 4. Once explained most people know what a piano bar event looks like. On the Con side: 1. Set up can be labor intensive. Digital stage pianos have weighted keys and are pretty heavy. Usually I need to bring a portable bench since I can’t count on a venue’s chair to be the right height. If I use the grand piano shell, I need another person. 2. Some venues just aren’t right for a piano gig. 3. Sometimes a venue booker can’t envision how a piano gig can work for their guests. Some picture cocktail piano music vs a piano bar sing along. 4. Many songs from the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s just don’t translate as well to piano. Can they played? Of course. But usually they have a different feel or need to be re-interpreted. This is especially true for folk songs. There’s more but I wanted to spark conversation and hear what others think.

Ok lets have a bit of fun. Personal appearance can say a lot about a person. I see many musicians on stage that look more like a roadie that forgot to take his clothes on tour. There are of course many different styles of music, there are many types of venues / audiences / occasions. Do you make any considerations to these when deciding what to wear. I once read that when a musician walks into the room, the audience should know that they are the musician by the way they dress. Others have written that the audience will have taken the time to dress for going out, so should the musician. Whats your approach. Personally I quite like getting dressed up a bit when I play - if its a formal function I might wear a jacket and tie, if I am doing a country night its out with the cowboy shirt and boots, if its a summer afternoon at the pub, its flowery shirt etc. Give us your take on it.

I'm just getting into backing tracks. Looking forward I want to use wireless IEMs for my performances. Just curious what headset/system everyone is using. Trying to keep the cost of the headset down to below $300.

I am curios. I just sing into a mic through a PA with no effects. The mixer has a simple EQ and I basically set it centre. I did look at one of those harmoniser type peddles but it relied on having a guitar input to work out the harmonics. Too complex for me. Any of you use a simple effects peddle that just adds a little depth to the vocals?