Jeannie Deva’s Gig Bag for the Self-Sufficient Singer
Be prepared for any place, anywhere, any time. Here's a way you can reduce stress, raise the quality of life for yourself and Walk in and SING!
Jeannie Deva’s Gig Bag for the Self-Sufficient Singer
When I first started out as a gigging singer, I expected everyone else to have it together and that I could just walk in pick up the mic that someone else had ready for me and sing. I thought everyone would know my tunes and would intuit the correct key for me to sing each song. I never realized that’s how I thought, but that certainly was how I lived my life.
But as time went on, I had more and more experiences that showed me I’d better smarten up and think things through. So I began to itemize what I needed that would allow me to arrive prepared for any occasion and so be able to sing any time, any place.
For example: do you want to walk into a jam session – or audition - and have the band play tunes that you know but they don’t? And do you spend more time trying to find songs in common with new players than you do singing them? Can you tell the players what key to play each song in that’s best for your voice? What about a mic? Do you ever sing yourself hoarse as you try to compete with all the other musicians because you don’t have a mic to use or the one they have is poor quality? And do you ever forget the lyrics and wish that you had them with you? What about playing with musicians that don’t read music charts but can catch the right chords if they only had a recording of the song you want to sing? These are just a few of the challenges that you may face and that need solutions.
So what is a Gig Bag?
Your gig bag could be any kind of canvas or leather bag that is large enough to hold all the things you may need when you go out to sing. This will be your “supply bag.” You’ll use it for going to jam sessions, open mic nights, rehearsals and performances, whatever types of musical situations you go to where you are or might possibly be able to sing.
You leave your gig bag packed and store it somewhere in your home. I usually modify the contents at least the day before I take it, based on my needs for that specific situation. However, there are always certain items that are the same for any situation and those, of course, stay in the bag no matter what.
More often than not, you may find yourself in a rush to get out the door and make it on time to your rehearsal, open mic, whatever. If you have your bag already packed, you can grab it and run out the door with no worry of arriving and realizing you forgot your mic, lyrics, etc.
Basic Items Checklist for Your Bag
Here’s a checklist to which you can add or subtract those items you find necessary to personalize your gig bag.
____ Lyric book – each song should have noted on it the key you sing it in. If you don’t know how to determine this, find a musician to help you out – it’s well worth the forethought and bit of time invested. My lyric book is a three ring binder so that I can add or subtract to the contents. When I am giving a full two hour concert, the first page is my set list and the lyric sheets are put in the set order.
____ Manila envelope of chord charts for each song you think you might want to have the band play, or you definitely want the band to play, with copies for each player. Again, for a performance, I would place at least one (usually more) copy of each song I will be doing for the performance. Sometimes players loose or forget their music and if you don’t have a spare copy, there goes playing the tune.
____ Your personal microphone.
____ A cable for your mic to connect to the PA.
____ A bottle of Thayer’s natural throat spray to keep your mouth moist.
____ A bottle of water.
____ A CD of the tunes you want to play with the band so they can hear how each sounds. I usually have a few of these that I pack so that multiple players can listen separately from each other or take one home with them to learn the tunes.
____ If you will be working with backup singers: Lyric sheets for each.
____ A pen and a pencil with an eraser for any note taking.
____ Ear plugs (if you’re playing with a loud band, especially in a small space and want to save your hearing).
____ If you have backup singers for a performance, a CD of just the tunes they will be singing, recorded in the order of the set.
____ A CD walkman.
____ A headset for the walkman.
____ Your vocal effects pedal – such as the TC-Helicon "VoiceTone Create" !
____ Cables to connect your effects pedal to the PA.
Remember, this is YOUR gig bag, so all you have to do is consider what you’ll be using it for and then modify the contents to fit your own purpose.
Here’s to your independence, ready to sing in any kind of situation!
All the Best,
Jeannie Deva
Jeannie Deva® Voice Studios
www.JeannieDeva.com