Cruise ship bands — Transcript

Full transcript

1. 0:08I wonder.
2. 0:25Welcome back to the Middle Age Musician
3. 0:26Podcast.
4. 0:28Coming to you live from downtown
5. 0:31Nashville, Tennessee, where I've been
6. 0:34down on Broadway, listening to a few
7. 0:36local bands and had some good times
8. 0:39enjoying some local music, mostly just
9. 0:42three-piece bands, high energy kind of
10. 0:44stuff. places like Morgan Wallins and
11. 0:48Margaritavville Cafe, which that was
12. 0:50just a acoustic soloist there, which was
13. 0:52actually better than the band in my
14. 0:54opinion over at Morgan Wallins, but uh
15. 0:58different crowds and a different vibe
16. 1:00there. But this podcast today is not
17. 1:03about Nashville and the music scene
18. 1:05there, although eventually I will do
19. 1:08one. But I wanted to continue the
20. 1:10conversation about cruise ships and the
21. 1:13fans that work there. If you've ever
22. 1:16been on a cruise and enjoyed the live
23. 1:18music in the theaters or in the lounges
24. 1:20or by the pool, you've seen these pros
25. 1:22in action. But what's it really like
26. 1:24behind the scenes? Today, I'm going to
27. 1:27break it down using a real moment
28. 1:29captured on a cruise ship stage. A tight
29. 1:31professional performance in an intimate
30. 1:33theater setting with an audience
31. 1:35enjoying the show from their seats. Let
32. 1:38me set the scene for you from the video
33. 1:41that I'm referencing. It's an evening on
34. 1:43a cruise ship. The house lights are
35. 1:45dimmed. Spotlights are cutting through
36. 1:47the warm wooden interior of the theater.
37. 1:50And in the foreground, you see the backs
38. 1:51of the audience's members heads and the
39. 1:53comfortable upholstered seats. out on
40. 1:56the stage as a female lead singer and
41. 1:59she's certainly dapped out and she's
42. 2:02glowing under the green and purple stage
43. 2:04lights holding her wireless mic pouring
44. 2:06her heart into the song behind her and
45. 2:10to the side male singer and then behind
46. 2:14them you've got the bass player, lead
47. 2:17guitarist and the drummer and they were
48. 2:21obviously very polished, very tight
49. 2:24sound clicking in as they're singing I
50. 2:27want to know, have you ever seen the
51. 2:29rain? And this is the kind of show that
52. 2:32a cruise ship musician delivers
53. 2:34typically every night, night after
54. 2:36night. So, let's talk about what it
55. 2:39actually takes to land and keep a gig
56. 2:40like this. First, the audition process.
57. 2:45Cruise lines like Carnival, Royal
58. 2:47Caribbean, Norwegian, or Disney don't
59. 2:49just hire anyone. You typically submit a
60. 2:52video and then you show that you can
61. 2:54play multiple styles. Maybe pop, rock,
62. 2:57Broadway, jazz, standards, Latin.
63. 2:59Current top 40. Versatility is always
64. 3:02key because one night you might be
65. 3:04backing a production show with
66. 3:05choreography and costumes and the next
67. 3:08year in a piano bar taking a request or
68. 3:10playing a pool deck party. Once you're
69. 3:13hired, contracts usually run six to nine
70. 3:15months at sea. Pay is decent, often
71. 3:18better than many land-based gigs when
72. 3:20you factor in that your room and board
73. 3:22are covered. Plus, you get to travel the
74. 3:24world for free, but it's not a vacation.
75. 3:28There is a daily reality to ship life.
76. 3:31Rehearsals. Expect intense band
77. 3:34rehearsals when you first join. The
78. 3:37music director runs a very tight chart.
79. 3:40Everyone needs to be able to read music
80. 3:43fairly well and adapt pretty quickly.
81. 3:46And this is referencing the bands that
82. 3:49really work, the shows, work for the
83. 3:51performers, maybe do the live karaoke
84. 3:54sessions. This doesn't necessarily apply
85. 3:56to the musicians, single musicians or
86. 3:59duets or trios like the Filipino band
87. 4:02that I had that were playing their own
88. 4:04sets.
89. 4:06But this part would apply to that. the
90. 4:08show schedule. You might play two to
91. 4:11four shows per night across different
92. 4:13venues on the ship. Sometimes a typical
93. 4:16evening could include a main theater
94. 4:18production at 7 and 9, then a late night
95. 4:20set in the lounge until 1:00. Some ships
96. 4:23have duos, trios, or full bands rotating
97. 4:26through different bars or theaters. One
98. 4:29set might be classic, the next might
99. 4:31classic rock, the next might be a
100. 4:33tribute to Mottown or a modern pop act.
101. 4:36In the video, the singer is fully
102. 4:38committed to a good old song from the
103. 4:4170s and the 80s. I think that's when uh
104. 4:44I want to know, have you ever seen the
105. 4:45rain? Maybe that's a just a pure 70s.
106. 4:47I'll have to look that up. And that
107. 4:50level of performance energy that she has
108. 4:52is pretty strong.
109. 4:56There are pros and cons. Let's be
110. 4:58honest. What are the pros? The travel.
111. 5:02You wake up every day in a new port
112. 5:04almost. You're in the Caribbean islands,
113. 5:06Mediterranean cities, Alaskan glaciers.
114. 5:10You get to see a lot of the terrain as
115. 5:13you're exploring.
116. 5:14There's camaraderie. The band becomes
117. 5:16your family. You eat together. You
118. 5:18rehearse together. You blow off steam
119. 5:20together. There's steady work. No
120. 5:23chasing gigs or wondering if you'll get
121. 5:25paid. Contracts provide stability and
122. 5:28safety,
123. 5:30peace of mind, you know, that that stuff
124. 5:32that freelance musicians really look
125. 5:34for. And stage sign, you get to perform
126. 5:38high quality shows with good production
127. 5:39values, lights, sounds, and an
128. 5:42appreciative audience that's typically
129. 5:44in a good mood.
130. 5:47In the video, you can see this coming
131. 5:49through with this girl singing.
132. 5:51Everybody is enjoying themselves. She's
133. 5:53smiling. She's swaying as she's singing
134. 5:55the song. It's a great environment.
135. 5:58The challenges.
136. 6:00Cabin life is pretty tough. Sometimes
137. 6:03it's shared or a small single cabin. And
138. 6:05seasickness can hit you hard, especially
139. 6:07in rough weather. Isolation. You're away
140. 6:11from your family. You're away from your
141. 6:12friends. Sometimes for months, even
142. 6:15maybe a year at a time. And internet at
143. 6:17sea is expensive and very spotty.
144. 6:21Repetition. You're playing the same set
145. 6:23list over and over and it can get
146. 6:25mentally taxing. You have to keep the
147. 6:27energy fresh for every audience.
148. 6:31Cruise lines, the rules. They have
149. 6:34strict policies. No heavy drinking on
150. 6:36duty. You got to be professional in your
151. 6:38appearance standards. And you're
152. 6:40essentially a on 247 as a crew member.
153. 6:45And then there's the groundhog day
154. 6:47effect. every week can start to feel
155. 6:49similar as the ship repeats its
156. 6:51itinerary.
157. 6:53So, here are some tips to think about if
158. 6:55you're thinking about pursuing this type
159. 6:57of gig.
160. 6:59Number one, build a strong demo video.
161. 7:01Film yourself playing a variety of
162. 7:03styles with good energy. Number two, be
163. 7:06prepared to play multiple instruments if
164. 7:09possible. Multi-instruments get prior
165. 7:11multi-instrumentalists
166. 7:13get priority.
167. 7:15Work on your showmanship. Look at the
168. 7:18singer in the video. She's not just
169. 7:20singing. She's performing. She's moving,
170. 7:22connecting with the audience and her
171. 7:24bandmate. Get comfortable reading charts
172. 7:27and playing in a tight ensemble if
173. 7:29that's the type of role that you're
174. 7:30seeking. Precision matters when you're
175. 7:33doing multiple shows back to back. So,
176. 7:35keep your mind and your eyes and your
177. 7:37chops fresh. And research the specific
178. 7:40cruise lines. Some focus more on big
179. 7:43production shows, others on guest
180. 7:45entertainers or lounge music.
181. 7:48Well, whether you're a musician dreaming
182. 7:50of life at sea or just a passenger who
183. 7:52loves the live music on your next
184. 7:54cruise, remember behind every smooth
185. 7:56performance is a team of dedicated pros
186. 7:58making it look effortless. If you've
187. 8:01worked on a cruise ship or have
188. 8:02questions about the gig, drop a comment
189. 8:05or send me a message. I'd love to hear
190. 8:07your stories. Okay. Well, thanks for
191. 8:09listening to The Middle Musician. Until
192. 8:11next time, you keep everything sharp.
193. 8:14Keep going going at it. Keep working
194. 8:17hard. It's not going
195. 8:29>> to know.
196. 8:36I want to know.