Yeah, that’s the good thing about being the first one, so you can quickly get it done and relax for the rest of the evening.
Many thanks to all the OM organisers and well done to all my fellow performers - it sounds like we all had a few brain freeze instances (I certainly did, but thankfully my fingers kept on going and hit some sort of notes)). Also many thanks to the audience for all the very kind comments.
Congrats to all the performers for stepping up,
Catching up today as I was at the Cropredy festival this weekend
Great playing and fab to see such a variety of countries and styles represented, hope you’ll all be back for the the next one too!
Cheers
Ruaridh
Just watched the recording of Open Mic 32. Firstly, I must apologise for missing it again, due to family commitments, but to all concerned, I must thank each and all for a brilliant evening. From the hoists behind the scenes to everyone who performed each and all, it is truly wonderful to see the effort all you people put into making these events happen. Thank you, cheers HEC
Thank you once again to the organizers for hosting a ‘first timers’ only event. It definitely lowered the barrier enough for me to take the plunge! Like others, the panic when you are ‘on’, the trembling hands, etc. were real. It did help performing to my ‘self image’ on the computer, i.e. I kept my zoom in ‘single pane’ mode. A part of my brain tried to read the live chats - thanks for the positive comments, it kept me going!
I am glad I have done this event and will certainly do more in the future.
Is there a write-up in some thread about the various ways to setup a backing track based performance for an open-mic? I have seen separate threads about audacity versus reaper, or DAW/AI versus ‘just play the track through your amp and let your zoom device pick up the sounds in the room’. Appreciate if someone can post some tips or links to a ‘how to’. I would like to try playing my electric guitar over a backing track mp3 (either Justin’s or something I buy or create through Moises), and (maybe) sing vocals over the top… and then stream all that through the Zoom open-mic.
Congrats to all the performers - it was great fun watching all of you perform, get some GAS from the cool guitars and room decor, and hang out after the show listening to the chatter!
Thank you to everyone who watched live or later - for all your support, positive thoughts and energy. This community is truly supportive, thoughtful and encouraging.
And a special shout-out to Jon Darcy (IIRC - I didn’t save a copy of the Zoom chats), for complimenting my use of Sus4 and 7th chord embellishments for Mad World ![]()
Well done everyone! Great listening!
I’m sure there are several ways to do that, but it’s likely to be quite dependent on the gear you have. In my case I used Headrush MX5, loaded backing tracks into the looper so the output signal from the unit already has my guitar and a BT. But it’s definitely not the option for every setup.
Hi there ![]()
Now that we have all evolved overnight (for UTC + 2) from OM JG beginners to experienced old sages who have seen it all… We can offer some advice to future OM beginners :
“There’s no better place to overcome your fears and experience a live event that’s unique in the world (literally, given that participants were spread across the west coast of the USA, Australia and Europe!)”
Simply because the JG community is welcoming, kind and encouraging, and each of its members knows that it’s not that easy to play the guitar, especially in public where we all lose some of our abilities :). And that’s why there are so good vibes, before, during and after the show.
Well done to everyone : We did it and it’s now part of our journey. I was happy to perform among you… and also to listen to you ![]()
And of course, a big thank you to the organisers who devoted their time to us and do everything they can to ensure that OM JG exists and that everyone is - as much as possible… - at ease
Hi / Bonjour Thierry : if I had known there were huge fans of Calvin Russell (you in the audience, but also among the performers - Grumpy Mac I think, as shared in our after show chat -, I would have been more stressed while playing … Here I played thinking that nobody would know and could compare with the original song. Hahaha. I love especially the lyrics of this song. So true and universal … And this is why I found a way to learn, play & sing this song. I love songs with lyrics that make sense … And this is defintely one.
Merci !
ahahah !
You’re right about the lyrics. This is, BTW, the first song I heard from him, a couple of years ago.
When you finished to play, I stopped the video and went on google to see if I could find the tabs, and… try it by myself.
It’s a pretty fast song (I begin to listen in a different manner songs, now), and decided that I’ll let a couple more lessons to pass by before trying again to play.
(I’m in Beginner Grade 1 module 4).
Do you know Beth Hart? Her blues seems very similar to Calvin’s, in my opinion.
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Good thing then you weren’t nervous and performed it so well. I didn’t hear about the song or Calvin Russell before, but now gonna listen to it.
Thanks Artem. I don’t mean to turn this into a ‘gear chat’, but I am hoping to turn ‘how I practice over a backing track’ into a ‘live stream for open mic’, while retaining the ability to monitor myself through headphones, and speak or sing through my microphone.
I have a Line 6 Catalyst 60 amp with line in, line out and XLR out, and a FocusRite Scarlett, and LogicPro. When I practice playing over a backing track or record myself doing so, I drop the backing track into Logic, connect my guitar to the Catalyst and XLR out to the Scarlett. I have an AT2020 mic for vocals (or for miking my tube amp, which doesn’t have a line out). If I am recording myself, I use an iPhone, and later swap the iPhone’s Audio with the audio recorded in Logic. I suppose I could login to the Zoom through the iPhone, but the audio quality won’t be as good.
i.e. I surmise that I need Guitar → Line 6 → Scarlett → Logic (which has the backing track) → send the output of my playing + the track to two places (1) headphone monitoring (2) zoom input.
Beth Hart = To me the greatest female singer and stage performer alive … She is amazing. And give 200% on stage.
I’vent found any tabs or so for Crossroads : just listening and watching. The chord progression is simple. Look for a version of this song by David Minster (who has a voice several octaves lower than mine
recorded at la Grange => easy to see the chords he plays.
I hope you do David. And that is a funny thing to read, from someone that chose to play some advanced Joe Satriani song for their first OM! Your fingers looked miles more fluid than mine are on a good day. ![]()
I don’t think there is, but you could start a thread asking the question. There are many, many ways to do it. I like the DAW based option for the flexibility it gives you - any decent DAW can do it (I’m partial to Ableton, which I got for free with my Focusrite, but am considering Logic Pro).
I love those all-welcoming vibes too Paul. I’ve been to real life OMs, and not performed because the ones where I live seem for pro level singer/songwriters rather than amateur learners having a crack. They’re in busy bars with the ever-judgemental public around.
Just rewatched the show, clearly there was lately a real influx of talent into the Community, well done to all debutants! Some cracking tunes all the way through the show, really enjoyed the VOD way of watching, althoigh would much more prefer to watch it live!
Thanks a lot for posting the video of the event and thanks to all the organisers @jkahn , @TheMadman_tobyjenner etc. snd of course a big thanks to the performers. I was down as part of the audience but have been laid up sick now for the last 10 days so in the end couldn’t attend. Haven’t been able to play the guitar for a week now. But since my goal is to do an OM in the next 6 months I’ll watch this one with interest.
Cheers, Ian
[quote="Pmassart, post:30, topic:401667”]
: if I had known there were huge fans of Calvin Russell (you in the audience, but also among the performers - Grumpy Mac I think, as shared in our after show chat -, I would have been more stressed while playing …
[/quote]
Yes Im a huge fan of Calvin Russell
I discovered him years ago
Manu Katche had a TV show on ARTE called “ One shot not “ and Calvin played an unplugged gig
I fell in love immediately with his music !
I even liked B J Scott ’s reboot of the song ![]()
Beth Hart is also an amazing artist , I discovered her on Classic 21
Here is a video of Calvin in one shot not
he died 2 weeks after that gig
You first-timers all did so good! I’m really happy for each of you who took that first-time plunge. Great work! And thank you to @DavidP @jkahn and @TheMadman_tobyjenner on the whole process. So appreciative that you are all ready, willing and able to run the show.
Amazing
what a great effort by everyone. Congrats to everyone for not only stepping up and delivering solid performances but also getting to grips with the required tech.
Some really great work, and plenty of challenging stuff by everyone from Lead to Fingerstyle not to mention Fingerstyle while singing
great work ![]()
I hope everyone enjoyed it enough to ensure we see you as regulars in the line up, it’s certainly great to see some new people coming in ![]()
Just to let everyone know I have now added the live Zoom Chat text file to the opening post. A little delayed but available now. ![]()