I played piano bars for years convinced that I was the one piano player that could and would never be able to memorize my songs. When I got into dueling, that shit didn't fly, so it was either figure it out or not do DP. So, for what it's worth, here's how I learn a song:
1. I have a playlist on my iPod of every song I want to eventually learn (currently there are 140 songs). I listen to this play list on shuffle whenever I have time.
2. When I have time to sit down and begin learning a new song I do a few things. First, I pick a song that I've been listening to for at least a couple months and have become familiar with. Since there are so many songs I need to know, i stick with the ones I generally like. Then, I look up the song on Wikipedia, to get any background or history I might want to know...i.e., who originally wrote it, who did the definitive version, when did it make the charts, will it be useful over in Europe, who has remade it recently, what movies was it in, etc. etc. etc.
3. d/l or type a lyric sheet with space between each line. If it's not a core song, I sometimes choose to shortcut and only memorize 2 verses since I generally want a three minute arrangement anyway.
4. Go to a website with chords, such as ultimate-guitar.com and get the (best rated) chord chart for that song. It will almost always be either wrong or too simplistic for professional use, but it's something to reference when working out the correct chords. Since I was not gifted with a particularly exceptional ear, doing this saves me time. I always notate the groove and tempo on my charts and I notate if there are solos or particular licks that will be important. The intro will be of particular interest.
5. Once I have a functional lead sheet, I carry it with me for a few days. Whenever I have a free couple of minutes, work on memorizing it. I usually have 3-5 songs I'm working on at any given time. The thing that helped me immensely in memorizing lyrics was doing idea associations between the lines. (Check out the Memory Book by Lorayne and Lucas. It's well worth the time.)
6. Once I have the lyrics 70-90% memorized, I practice the song at the piano at least once every day, for maybe a week, or if it's complex, much more.
Showing posts with label piano bar. Show all posts
Showing posts with label piano bar. Show all posts
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Monday night, Tues morn
I have signed up to be an escort for some of the shore excursions. So far I have not been chosen. Today (Tues) we are in Dominica (not to be confused with the Dominican Republic) which seems to be a very interesting island full of rain forests and mountains. I got up early, thinking to go out and find a bike tour, but after getting all coffee’d up and packed for the day, I walked out of the ship to find it’s pouring rain. Abort plan!
Last night was the first really electric night I have had in the piano lounge. I had a room full of 40- and 50-somethings who were ready to party. We brought the house down with some great sing-a-longs and I got to do some of my silly material, like Old MacDonald’s Deformed Farm. The patrons were buying me drinks all night and I even made some tips even though I’m not allowed a tip jar. Some of the Bears appeared and were requesting Broadway, so I pulled some of that material out of my hat. But it was a delicate balance because I think the other patrons were getting put off a bit when I devoted some of the show to making them happy with the Broadway. But all in all, it was a truly great night at the piano bar. After I finished I sat down and drank with a handful of English passengers and we got pretty rowdy after a couple of hours. I think we closed down the entire ship.
I spoke briefly with James, the Senior Assistant Cruise Director. He seemed to be fine and upbeat. Hopefully that’s all said and done with.
Last night was the first really electric night I have had in the piano lounge. I had a room full of 40- and 50-somethings who were ready to party. We brought the house down with some great sing-a-longs and I got to do some of my silly material, like Old MacDonald’s Deformed Farm. The patrons were buying me drinks all night and I even made some tips even though I’m not allowed a tip jar. Some of the Bears appeared and were requesting Broadway, so I pulled some of that material out of my hat. But it was a delicate balance because I think the other patrons were getting put off a bit when I devoted some of the show to making them happy with the Broadway. But all in all, it was a truly great night at the piano bar. After I finished I sat down and drank with a handful of English passengers and we got pretty rowdy after a couple of hours. I think we closed down the entire ship.
I spoke briefly with James, the Senior Assistant Cruise Director. He seemed to be fine and upbeat. Hopefully that’s all said and done with.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Friday night
Last night was an easy night. I only was scheduled for 90 minutes. When I arrived the room was empty but within 5 minutes there was not an empty seat in the house. That felt nice. I recognized most of the people from previous nights. Tonight will the last night of the cruise and I’m told I must wind it down by midnight or before so that everyone has time to get proper sleep before disembarking tomorrow. Tomorrow night is my night off.
After my short shift last night I watched the Rocky Horror Picture Show on the big screen located outside on the top deck with some of the gay boys I met on this trip. I never really liked that movie and indeed after about an hour I had to leave. I then went to the crew bar for the first time since I’ve been here, now that the red alert has been lifted. It was mellow, and I had a long chat with the Senior Activities director who is third in charge below the Cruise Director, and thus an immediate supervisor of sorts. His boyfriend is a Mexican national and one of the dancers in the production show—the only gay dancer on the ship, I might ad, as I’ve met the other three and they are all straight. Who knew? But anyway, he was said that everyone was very happy with my work and suggested that I let the Cruise Director know that I would be available for future work. Cool.
Finally, in my cabin, I read until I fell asleep. This morning I woke up in St. Thomas. I called on room service for the first time (another thing I couldn’t do during red alert) and got a pot of coffee delivered to my room. Sweet! I have been in my room now all morning drinking coffee and finishing my current book. It’s called Perfume by Patrick Suskind, and it’s a highly original story about a wunderkind perfumer who, as the story progresses, attempts to capture the scent of a virgin pubescent girl. In addition to a brilliant and original plot, the writer through words alone brings the world of scents and smells alive for the reader, rather like describing the concept of color to a blind man. Just as brilliantly, he exposes the twisted thinking and inner workings of the mind of the protagonist. I understand it’s a movie, but I can’t imagine the movie being able to accomplish what the book has done.
After my short shift last night I watched the Rocky Horror Picture Show on the big screen located outside on the top deck with some of the gay boys I met on this trip. I never really liked that movie and indeed after about an hour I had to leave. I then went to the crew bar for the first time since I’ve been here, now that the red alert has been lifted. It was mellow, and I had a long chat with the Senior Activities director who is third in charge below the Cruise Director, and thus an immediate supervisor of sorts. His boyfriend is a Mexican national and one of the dancers in the production show—the only gay dancer on the ship, I might ad, as I’ve met the other three and they are all straight. Who knew? But anyway, he was said that everyone was very happy with my work and suggested that I let the Cruise Director know that I would be available for future work. Cool.
Finally, in my cabin, I read until I fell asleep. This morning I woke up in St. Thomas. I called on room service for the first time (another thing I couldn’t do during red alert) and got a pot of coffee delivered to my room. Sweet! I have been in my room now all morning drinking coffee and finishing my current book. It’s called Perfume by Patrick Suskind, and it’s a highly original story about a wunderkind perfumer who, as the story progresses, attempts to capture the scent of a virgin pubescent girl. In addition to a brilliant and original plot, the writer through words alone brings the world of scents and smells alive for the reader, rather like describing the concept of color to a blind man. Just as brilliantly, he exposes the twisted thinking and inner workings of the mind of the protagonist. I understand it’s a movie, but I can’t imagine the movie being able to accomplish what the book has done.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Work
Work has been going well. The age of my patrons ranges from 20yo up to 70yo, with the vast majority being in their 50’s and 60’s. As the week progressed I’ve garnered quite a few regulars who have made the job a lot of fun. They aren’t shy about requesting songs, and by now know what I can and cannot do. I find myself doing things like Blue Suede Shoes, Great Balls, Mustang Sally, Buttercup, Daydream Believer, Croc Rock, Killing Me Softly, Mama Don’t Dance, You Lost That Lovin Feeling and NY State of Mind. My two biggest requests here are Sweet Caroline and Piano Man. I’ve been trying to keep it upbeat, but many times they want to hear some mellow tunes like James Taylor or Eric Clapton’s “Wonderful Tonight.” So far I haven’t made very much on tips, which is not really essential since I am getting paid a decent wage. We are not allowed to have a tip jar out on the piano, but when someone does hand me a tip, I make a fuss over it on the mic and leave it sitting as conspicuously as possible on top of the piano. Last night I had already goine 30 min past the time I am allowed to stop and yet they wanted me to continue. Hoping to keep me playing, one of my regulars asked me what I was drinking. I told him I was drinking twenty dollar bills. Within moments there was a Dos Equis beer and $40 on the piano. That was worth another 20 minutes. But it’s tricky with the bar staff. I was told by my boss, who is the Cruise Director, that I should continue to play after midnight if I have a crowd. This is fair, as I am only scheduled for 3 hours. So even going into overtime doesn’t really strain me. But the bar staff would prefer I finish at exactly midnight, because they have been working all day and all night. Because of the red alert with the Noro virus, the staff hasn’t had a day off as they have been conscripted into disinfecting the ship when not working their normal stations. So I definitely feel for them and respect all the hard work they do. But it’s a delicate dance because they want me to stop, and yet I’ve been told to keep my show going if there’s a crowd and booze is being sold. And they will never actually tell me to stop because they don’t want to take responsibility for that; they want me to stop of my own accord so that if there is a question about who closed down the bar, they can say that it was the piano player that stopped.
The red alert for the Noro virus has been lifted so the crew bar is open again. During red alert, they had actually suspended handing out the bi-weekly cash wage (paid to non-American crew members) to the crew for fear of the virus being spread through the money. That made people pretty unhappy because most of the crew was expecting to send their pay home in St. Kitts and weren’t able to do it. The other thing that they did during red alert was not allow the crew to serve themselves (buffet style) in the crew mess, but rather be served by the stewards (think cafeteria lunch lady). As a result there was an unreasonably long line to get served. Because the crew has been kept so busy with cleaning tasks in addition to their normal duties, some of them were going hungry because they just didn’t have the time to wait in line.
I have heard that people are still getting sick, but I guess the Captain realized he might have a mutiny on his hands if he wasn’t able to pay or feed the crew properly. And really, I don’t know how effective closing the crew rec area was during the red alert, as the crew just had impromptu parties inside their rooms that spilled out into the hallways. One of these parties was going on two nights ago outside my door with the music staff. Life back in the crew area reminds me of my freshman dorm in college. It’s really not much different.
The red alert for the Noro virus has been lifted so the crew bar is open again. During red alert, they had actually suspended handing out the bi-weekly cash wage (paid to non-American crew members) to the crew for fear of the virus being spread through the money. That made people pretty unhappy because most of the crew was expecting to send their pay home in St. Kitts and weren’t able to do it. The other thing that they did during red alert was not allow the crew to serve themselves (buffet style) in the crew mess, but rather be served by the stewards (think cafeteria lunch lady). As a result there was an unreasonably long line to get served. Because the crew has been kept so busy with cleaning tasks in addition to their normal duties, some of them were going hungry because they just didn’t have the time to wait in line.
I have heard that people are still getting sick, but I guess the Captain realized he might have a mutiny on his hands if he wasn’t able to pay or feed the crew properly. And really, I don’t know how effective closing the crew rec area was during the red alert, as the crew just had impromptu parties inside their rooms that spilled out into the hallways. One of these parties was going on two nights ago outside my door with the music staff. Life back in the crew area reminds me of my freshman dorm in college. It’s really not much different.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Cruise, day 2
Yesterday the Capt made a very sobering announcement over the crew-area intercom. Apparently there are crew members that are still getting sick from this “Norovirus” and so more extreme measures will be taken, namely the closing down of the crew bar, crew gym and crew internet. Additionally crew members are not to go into passenger areas unless they are carrying out of their duties. These rules don’t really affect me directly as I am technically a guest and am permitted to use the passenger gym, restaurants and bars. But it is a bit scary, and I’ve taken to disinfecting my hands quite often.
Here are the facts about the Norovirus: It is an extremely common virus, which causes gastroenteritis causing nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Symptoms usually last between 1 and 3 days and generally resolve without treatment or long-term consequences. It is also highly contagious, which is the main issue on board a ship where everyone, especially the crew and staff are living in close quarters.
Because they have closed the crew bar the beverage quartermaster is selling bottles of alcohol directly to the crew members at cost in a sale called “cambooza.” I haven’t figured out the etymology of this word yet, but will report back to you if I do. I’m also going to see if I am allowed to participate in this. I think I am.
On a similar note, I haven’t quite figured out how to get bottled water in my cabin, other than to buy it at passenger prices at the bar. So this morning I woke up at 5:30am extremely thirsty. In my fridge are two Bud Light bottles left for me by my predecessor. Of course they were not twist offs, so I spent the better part of 5 minutes trying to use my apartment key to pry off the top whilst not injuring my hands. Finally after spending way too much time trying to quench my thirst, I fell back asleep. I must say I am really enjoying falling asleep on the boat. The sea has been rather choppy and the back and forth motion of the boat just rocks me to sleep. I am on Deck 7 which is about 3 decks above the surface of the water so the movement is rather gentle. The higher in the ship you are, the more exaggerated the movement is. I found myself not wanting to wake up this morning, mostly due to the hypnotic rocking motion. But when I did, I used the rest of the Bud Light to take my morning vitamins.
I worked the piano lounge for the first time last night. Upon arriving, I couldn’t get the sound to work, so the bartender tracked down one of the sound techs who explained to me how to switch over from the canned music to my system—something he should have explained when we did the sound check on Sunday. As people began to fill up the lounge, I used a lot of the skills I’ve learned with dueling pianos to get them to participate, but it was a struggle. They seemed to want to listen more than anything, but I did manage to get them singing. The cruise director was pleased with my performance which is important. I found it exhausting, and to top it off, I realized I had left my room key in my room. So the night crew supervisor was tracked down for me at 1 am so I could get back home.
Here are the facts about the Norovirus: It is an extremely common virus, which causes gastroenteritis causing nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Symptoms usually last between 1 and 3 days and generally resolve without treatment or long-term consequences. It is also highly contagious, which is the main issue on board a ship where everyone, especially the crew and staff are living in close quarters.
Because they have closed the crew bar the beverage quartermaster is selling bottles of alcohol directly to the crew members at cost in a sale called “cambooza.” I haven’t figured out the etymology of this word yet, but will report back to you if I do. I’m also going to see if I am allowed to participate in this. I think I am.
On a similar note, I haven’t quite figured out how to get bottled water in my cabin, other than to buy it at passenger prices at the bar. So this morning I woke up at 5:30am extremely thirsty. In my fridge are two Bud Light bottles left for me by my predecessor. Of course they were not twist offs, so I spent the better part of 5 minutes trying to use my apartment key to pry off the top whilst not injuring my hands. Finally after spending way too much time trying to quench my thirst, I fell back asleep. I must say I am really enjoying falling asleep on the boat. The sea has been rather choppy and the back and forth motion of the boat just rocks me to sleep. I am on Deck 7 which is about 3 decks above the surface of the water so the movement is rather gentle. The higher in the ship you are, the more exaggerated the movement is. I found myself not wanting to wake up this morning, mostly due to the hypnotic rocking motion. But when I did, I used the rest of the Bud Light to take my morning vitamins.
I worked the piano lounge for the first time last night. Upon arriving, I couldn’t get the sound to work, so the bartender tracked down one of the sound techs who explained to me how to switch over from the canned music to my system—something he should have explained when we did the sound check on Sunday. As people began to fill up the lounge, I used a lot of the skills I’ve learned with dueling pianos to get them to participate, but it was a struggle. They seemed to want to listen more than anything, but I did manage to get them singing. The cruise director was pleased with my performance which is important. I found it exhausting, and to top it off, I realized I had left my room key in my room. So the night crew supervisor was tracked down for me at 1 am so I could get back home.
Monday, October 27, 2008
All aboard!
Sunday morning made it to Brooklyn where my cruise ship was parked. I will be working the piano lounge for the next 14 days. My arrival at the port and then again on the ship was full of confusion because my travel documents and contract were written out in my legal name, and the ship’s crew supervisor had processed my arrival with my professional name. Once the cruise staff in the port had found my welcome envelope with my room key/charge card, I was instructed to wait in a holding area with a couple thousand other guests while the ship was being disinfected due to an onboard stomach virus the last cruise. (The West Norton Virus, or some shit like that). Nice. After being permitted to board and after even more confusion I was shown to my cabin, whose door had been left open. So it was only after unpacking and then leaving my cabin that I realized my key did not work in the door. More drama.
I have status as a “Guest Entertainer” which means that I am treated as a guest and I have no actual crew or staff duties except to show up at the piano and do my show every night. I am, I’m told, the only member of the entire crew that is permitted room service. As a guest I am encouraged to use all guest facilities and I get a staff discount on all the bars, shops and spa on the ship, and yet I am also permitted to utilize the crew recreation area where I can get drinks for about $1.50, and internet for a quarter of the price charged to regular guests. My cabin is for all intents and purposes a passenger cabin with a large window and a bathroom, but it is located in the crew area. There is a steward assigned to the cabin that cleans it every day, changes the lines and takes care of my dry cleaning and laundry. I also just discovered that I am permitted to bring a guest with me to travel during the length of my contract. My predecessor, who is also a friend of mine, is convinced that the Guest Entertainer’s job is the number one job on the ship, even better than that of the captain or the cruise director. When I arrived in my cabin, he had just vacated it from the last cruise and had left me a couple beers in the fridge along with the vocal mic and the key to the piano in the drawer. It took a few hours for me to connect with the Cruise Director (my boss), so I had to figure out most things on my own. It was confusing, but after asking around, I was able to get my documents all sorted out, my room key corrected, my sound check done, the laundry situation figured out and finally track down the Cruise Director, who by this time had tried calling me several times in my cabin. He and his deputy both seemed very professional and easy-going. They were very clear about what they expected from me, which is something I always appreciate. I was told, sadly, that the ship is still on Red Alert, due to this gastro-intestinal virus and that due to cross contamination concerns I had to choose whether to eat and drink in the crew area or the guest area. As I had already had dinner with the guests, the decision was made for me. I’m disappointed because I was really looking forward to drinking with the crew. But now I must wait for the Red Alert to pass.
My predecessor and friend had negotiated Sunday nights off for me, so I was lucky to have my first night off, which is good, as I had been working the 4 nights prior to Sunday in New York. I spent the first night scouting out the ship, and the bars. It was extremely quiet after 11pm. I hope that was just because everyone was tired from traveling. I’m very excited to do my show tonight. The lounge is actually within a very central and open space, so everyone walking by (which should be most of the ship's passengers) will be able to hear me and have the option of sticking around. I did a sound check and the sound guy preprogrammed a memorized setting for me on the board. The piano is a Yamaha baby grand, and it is voiced very bright but I was able to soften it in the mix. I like the PA system. It works well with my voice.
I have status as a “Guest Entertainer” which means that I am treated as a guest and I have no actual crew or staff duties except to show up at the piano and do my show every night. I am, I’m told, the only member of the entire crew that is permitted room service. As a guest I am encouraged to use all guest facilities and I get a staff discount on all the bars, shops and spa on the ship, and yet I am also permitted to utilize the crew recreation area where I can get drinks for about $1.50, and internet for a quarter of the price charged to regular guests. My cabin is for all intents and purposes a passenger cabin with a large window and a bathroom, but it is located in the crew area. There is a steward assigned to the cabin that cleans it every day, changes the lines and takes care of my dry cleaning and laundry. I also just discovered that I am permitted to bring a guest with me to travel during the length of my contract. My predecessor, who is also a friend of mine, is convinced that the Guest Entertainer’s job is the number one job on the ship, even better than that of the captain or the cruise director. When I arrived in my cabin, he had just vacated it from the last cruise and had left me a couple beers in the fridge along with the vocal mic and the key to the piano in the drawer. It took a few hours for me to connect with the Cruise Director (my boss), so I had to figure out most things on my own. It was confusing, but after asking around, I was able to get my documents all sorted out, my room key corrected, my sound check done, the laundry situation figured out and finally track down the Cruise Director, who by this time had tried calling me several times in my cabin. He and his deputy both seemed very professional and easy-going. They were very clear about what they expected from me, which is something I always appreciate. I was told, sadly, that the ship is still on Red Alert, due to this gastro-intestinal virus and that due to cross contamination concerns I had to choose whether to eat and drink in the crew area or the guest area. As I had already had dinner with the guests, the decision was made for me. I’m disappointed because I was really looking forward to drinking with the crew. But now I must wait for the Red Alert to pass.
My predecessor and friend had negotiated Sunday nights off for me, so I was lucky to have my first night off, which is good, as I had been working the 4 nights prior to Sunday in New York. I spent the first night scouting out the ship, and the bars. It was extremely quiet after 11pm. I hope that was just because everyone was tired from traveling. I’m very excited to do my show tonight. The lounge is actually within a very central and open space, so everyone walking by (which should be most of the ship's passengers) will be able to hear me and have the option of sticking around. I did a sound check and the sound guy preprogrammed a memorized setting for me on the board. The piano is a Yamaha baby grand, and it is voiced very bright but I was able to soften it in the mix. I like the PA system. It works well with my voice.
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