The Ups and Downs of Gigging!

Melbourne has a diverse and immensely talented music culture. You walk down the streets of Melbourne and you will witness musicians and artists from all over the world, contributing to the already multi-cultural city that we live in. You can walk into a local hotel, a pub or a club and experience a range of different music genres that will suit your musical tastes.

Gigging in Melbourne is not always easy however. I have been gigging around Melbourne for a few years now and its been such a wonderful experience, but it has also been a challenging one. Upon speaking to many different artists, they too have experienced the difficulties of gigging. A lot of the times, artists who gig would rarely get paid, and even when they do get paid, it is not much. I think it would be fair to say however, that local musicians do not do it for the money. It is purely the passion and enjoyment that they have for music and performing that keeps them going. It is the crowd and the people you meet that has the most satisfying rewards.

I think what the real difficulty is (for me anyway), is to consistently get numbers. Some gigs you may have 20-30 people rock up to your show, and on other occasions… none. This makes it hard to keep venues happy and could affect how often you are asked to play. I do remember the time when I serenaded 6 dudes at the Empress Hotel. They were such a great audience and responded well to all my love songs. 🙂 When we do have those numbers, it makes for such a memorable experience.

If there is anything I want to highlight in this blog, it would be this. SUPPORT LOCAL MUSIC. If you know of friends or friends of friends that are playing, go and support them. It would mean a lot to see familiar faces as well as strangers who come along to listen to our music. The more people there are, the more vibrant the atmosphere. I can guarantee you that you will witness some amazing talent that you would not find anywhere else in mainstream media. As musicians, there have been a lot of sacrifices that were made to get to where we are today. So I encourage everybody, find out what shows are happening around Melbourne, and keep Melbourne’s local music scene alive.

 

DaylerTV is back for 2013!

DaylerTV is BACK! That’s right! DaylerTV is back for another year of awesome music and talent from the David Jaanz School of Singing. So you may be sitting there thinking, “What is this DaylerTV thing?”

About a year ago, Tyler Wilford and I thought it would be great to start a YouTube channel and interview students from the David Jaanz School of Singing. We kicked off our first episode at Jaanz camp “Explode”, where we interviewed Fatai from the Voice, Frank Dixon, Isabella Yoseski and other students from the school.

We believe this year will be the beginning of an amazing journey for many students from the school. Already we have 4 students on the voice (Kaity Dunstan, Harrison Craig, Maya Weiss and Caterina Torres). So to keep up to date with what’s happening, follow us on Facebook and subscribe to us on YouTube. Check out our videos from open mics, camps and other random adventures that we will have throughout the year.

Dream BIG!!

Feature Artist: Tyler Wilford!

Tyler Wilford! This kid is a champion. I have been taking singing lessons with Tyler for a few years now at the David Jaanz School of Singing. He is energetic, positive, and has such a great outlook on life. On top of his awesome personality, he is an amazing musician. I have had the privilege of seeing him grow over the years and he is currently writing some amazing stuff. I cannot wait to see the day when he sings in massive stadiums at sell out concerts because I believe he has more than what it takes to get there. If you are not entirely sure who Tyler is, google him. YouTube him. This kid was on the 2012 Young Talent Time team and has toured the country. Last week, I sat down with him and asked a few questions about life and music.

What were your musical inspirations growing up?
Tyler: Kiss, Guns & Roses, Queen, AC DC and basically rock bands that dad got me into.

How was your experience on YTT (Young Talent Time)?
Tyler: It was amazing and overwhelming. I made heaps of friends and I got so much exposure to the music industry.

What is some advice that can give to those who want to get into the music industry?
Tyler: Practice a lot! Practice heart! Write a lot of songs and do gigs. Try and get yourself out there through social media such as YouTube.

What are you currently doing with your music career?
Tyler:  I am currently writing an album. Just doing a lot of music and working in my studio. Also doing a lot of zoning.

What is you ultimate dream and goal for music?
Tyler: I want to revolutionise music and bring back Rock & Roll.

So there you have it! Tyler Wilford ladies and gentlemen. Keep an eye on this young man as you will be seeing more of him on Dayler TV…… What is Dayler TV you ask?? You’ll have to wait and see! In the mean time, like his Facebook page and subscribe to his YouTube channel!

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Tyler-Wilford/216325828457014?ref=ts&fref=ts
http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCk9sMhoj74yemcFVlfVaifQ?feature=watch

The Jason Mraz Concert!

Last night I had the wonderful privilege of seeing Jason Mraz in concert. The supporting act, Zac Brown Band, was INCREDIBLE, getting us ready for what was to be an amazing night of music and entertainment. But before I get into more details about the concert, let me begin by telling you the events of how the night unfolded….

My friends and I had planned to meet at a mutual friends house at 5pm. Here we would pack our dinner and snacks, and carpool to the Sidney Myer Music Bowl with the intention of getting there early to get a good view of the man. However, the unexpected happened… my car just wouldn’t start. After spending half an hour trying to figure out what was wrong, we decided to unload everything and go in a different car. I could not help but think in my mind that “It’s a Toyota! This should not be happening!”. But I got over it pretty quickly. On our way there, I was on the phone with AAMI trying to get some roadside assistance but apparently they will only assist you if you are more than 100km out from the city… (WHAT?!)

Anyway, as we reached the Sidney Music Myer Bowl, I was appraoched by a couple and their son asking me whose concert was playing that night. I told them it was Jason Mraz. The blank stare on their faces was almost hilarious until the mother asked me, “Can you sing a couple of bars for me?”. To which I happily obliged. We got through the massive line fairly quick and met our friend who was reserving a rather large piece of grass for 5 all by herself.

The Zac Brown Band was awesome! This was the first time I have heard of them and I was very impressed. The energy on the stage was contagious and I could not help but think that life is just so great when you have good friends, good food and good music to share the experience with… and the weather was good too.

It was about 8:45pm when Jason Mraz made his appearance on stage. Singing songs from old and new albums, mixed with an amazing band and multimedia, made his performance an enjoyable one. However…. the fact that you can hire chairs and plonk them anywhere you like, proved to be a frustrating matter… for at least one of my friends.

This Asian couple had decided to hire chairs and seat them right in front of where we were sitting, blocking the view of my friend. The look of “What the heck?” came over her face and I think she really wanted to beat them up. What was worse and rather amusing, was when the Asian man started falling asleep and was soon woken up by the sound of the band coming in again. This followed by some out of time clapping and unsuccessful whistling and as annoying as it may have been, it definitely added to the experience.

Jason Mraz concluded the night with “I Won’t Give Up” leaving that song stuck in our heads as we walked back to the car. Then it hit me. My car is broken! After much driving around to get jump leads and being on the phone with AAMI, we finally got the car started. I thank my friends for helping me out last night and I can safely assume that they are probably feeling the effects of it today! Jason Mraz was amazing in concert and I would definitely consider going to another one of his concerts again.