Busking (street musican) anyone?

[BruceW]

Has anyone out there tried the busking scene? I often see folks playing in some public spot with their guitar case open, welcoming any loose change people may have. I've not seen too many saxophonists try this gig.

What kind of cash can someone pull in doing something like that?

In your city, do you need a license to street perform? In Edmonton (Canada) you don't but my former city of Winnipeg did require a license. In fact, you needed to audition to get one. If you were good enough, you were allowed to play in the better areas.

[Frank D]

This was discussed awhile back, although I'm not sure if it was on the old forum or not. You might want to try some searches.

I'm not saying we shouldn't discuss (again), just throwing out some ideas of where you might find info.

[gary]

It's here: http://saxontheweb.myforums.net/viewtopic.php?t=4333&highlight=busking

Found it after doing a search of "busking".

Bruce - I don't know if it's still available in some form, but fellow SOTW Forum member, Canadian, and queen of saxophone buskers Kim Pelletier had an excellent web page on busking. It was very informative. I don't know if she's too busy at the moment to help, or if it's available, but it was great. It gave me a lot of tips and encouragement. Maybe you can ask her about it.

[Bill Mecca]

Kim's site was great. I think she has "retired" from street performing.


I often spend my lunch break playing in the parking lot. Never put out a can, but do get some nice responses from others at lunch. It's a great help for a big tone as well... and I love bouncing the sound off the nearby buildings.

[BruceW]

Thanks everyone. Wow talk about a quick response. Our coutries' Early Warning System should be so responsive.

I too found the thread you refered to and by the time I finished, there was already another message referring to it.

Thanks for the help. I'll refer to that other thread and resurect it if need be.

[Whatasaxman]

I have a friend who has done some street playing here in Seattle, and he just told me that he made more when using an ugly horn than when using the horn he had just finished rebuilding and having re-plated. So, I guess looking like you need the money helps a bit.

[jd]

always thought of doing it . but in downtown cleveland you could run into problems. id be worried that id run in to gangs or whatever (crackheads might be out there to try and take my selmer!!not worth it. but id do it with a cheapo horn just for some fun i guess.but id have to have a chordal instrument. dont like playing solo

[kcp]

Bruce, got to http://www.performers.net/forums/ You'll find tons of information about busking places around the world, gigs, festivals, etc...

Yes, for those who didn't know, my "Streetsax" web site is no longer :cry: I decided to put it off-line a little over a year ago. That website contained a wee-bit too much info about me and my busking habbits and that proved to be problematic.

As of me beeing "retired" from the street scene, well that's true and false. I did say I was gonna take some time off the streets; I didn't buy my street musician permit last year. But I did perform on the streets on a few occasions anyway :roll: I guess I'l never be able to stop playing on the streets for good. And so, I'm planning for a come-back this year, however it won't be on a day-to-day regular bassis.

Street playing is real fun but it's also a lonely job at times and you have to be careful cause not everyone can be trusted in this field of activities. If I have one word of advice, don't let it become something you rely on for making a living. You can make a living out of busking, but it has it's ups and downs ex: If it rains for a week you're in trouble. Also you can never tell, it's never the same day after day. It's like gambling, sometimes you win, sometimes you loose - In the long run that becomes stressful and depressing.

But as long as you do it for the pleasure of playing music, busking is fun to do. Just take it one day at a time, if you make good money take it, if you don't, don't fuss about it and don't be hard on yourself.

Hope that helps 8)

[kcp]

Hi again Bruce, I saw your post in that other thread in sax Lifestyle and decided to reply to it here:

What I'd like to know is how much cold, hard cash a busker can make. I've heard anywhere from $20 in a day to $20 in less than an hour. Anyone bold enough to tempt the IRS (and Revenue Canada) and share what kind of money can be made?

Geez, you newbies are terrible! So you wanna know about money figures uh? The truth is Bruce, if you heard anywhere from $20 in a day to $20 in less than an hour: that’s because it’s true. How much money can someone earn by playing on the streets depends of so many factors;

The weather: (sunny days are better than rainy days)
The day of the week: (Thu, Fri, Sat are better than Mon and Tue and Wed are the worst ever)
The time of the month: (beginning of the month is better than at the end of the month)
The time: (evenings are usually better than morning… BTW no saxophone on a week morning before 10am, especially not Mondays, people WILL CRUCIFY you)
Thd month of the year: (each month is different depending of the country. In Canada it’s usually May, June, July and August that are the best months. June and July are the peek of the season)

Then if you wanna go to down even more specific details:

The spot where you play: (it’s better around bars and night clubs cause people tend to be more generous when they are drunk)
The side of the street you play on: (Usually the sunny side of the street works best, but if it’s a cloudy day you have to know what’s the tendency like in the area where you busk)
The side of the side walk: (The right side is best cause most people walk on the same side they would drive a car and coincidentally the majority of people are right handed)
How many other buskers are there around: (Cause every buskers knows drunk people tend to be more generous)
How good the other buskers are: (If you are not good enough, they’ll eat you alive)
How early you can arrive to your spot: (Some buskers nearly camp out on their good spots)
How you dress like: (As opposed to popular belief, if you dress like a bum, people won’t feel sorry for you. The idea behind busking is to NOT make people wanna cross the street away from you)
How good you can be at sweet-talking beggars and other buskers: (Usually works best if you are a woman, if you are not well… try wearing a dress – Guaranteed YOU WILL make cash)
The type of repertoire you play and how much you are willing to bend-over to please your audience : (Tnfortunately jazz doesn’t pay very good… that part really sucks)

How much people-skill you have :

Some tricks: When playing for a couple – Play for the girlfriend, the boyfriend will cough-up the cash.

When there is a wedding group; Play for the father of the bride – FOTB will give you some (a 10$, 20$ or 50$ if you are lucky) and the groom will have no choice but to equal that amount.

People with babies or a young child: Yes, get down on your knees, play softly for the child and go: “goo-gee-goo-gee-ga-ga” – Not only the parents will give you money but you’ll attract such a crowd of people thinking “Ahwww, that child is so adorable!” and go figure, they’ll give you money for that.

There are more tricks like that but I think I’m gonna stop cause I have a feeling you are starting to despise me now :oops:

And finally, how good you can play: (the more talented you are, the better)
--------------------

but you want figures… okay I give you figures. I can only talk about my experience here, so here it goes:

The most money I have ever earned playing on the streets was roughly $190 in less than 45 minutes of playing time. This was 5 years ago, on an evening from 7;00pm until 7:45 pm at the end of July on Prince-Arthur street in Montréal in front of the restaurant of the same name. What happened? – Turns-out there was a couple of people standing behind me who were waiting for a group of friends (2 buses loaded of them) to go to a restaurant. I was playing while this crowd of people gathered behind me. When I stopped playing at some point, these people started clapping in their hands. So I turned around and saw this big crowd of people which I had no idea were there – Just the expression I had on my face upon seeing that crowd made these people laugh, and clap even more; not only them, but everyone else who was observing this situation too. So everybody just started to throw money in my case, loonies and townies for the most, some 5$ bills.

There was an other time where I earned very close to 400$ in about 2 hours of playing time, but that is a longer story which involves a bachelor-party and a groom-to-be who was waaay too drunk and wearing a tutu :lol:

And finally, the less money I have ever earned was 73 cents in 5 hours of playing time – What happened? Just bad luck I guess.

8)

[BruceW]

Thanks Kim,

We newbies are not so terrible! To be honest, I was asking about the money strictly out of my unyielding curiosity. I'm certainly not ready to give up my day job as they say to hit the busking scene.

I do play in my church every once in a while and still get nervous. Maybe trying some public playing (like busking) could help me get over that. Or, it just might turn me off performing totally depending on the crowd.

It sounds like I'd at least be able to recoup the cost of the license. I know I always give a loonie or two if I see a sax player. Of course I'm an easy mark!

Thanks again Kim.

[kcp]

You are welcome.

I was just teasing when calling you a "newbie", I hope that didn't bother you.

As for feeling nervous before a performance, I beleive that street performing is a good way to ovecome that. Anyhow, it did work for me :D

Have fun

[gary]

And THAT meine Damen und Herren is why Kim's former site was so good!

Thanks for the summary, Kim.

[jazzbluescat]

:D

[3saxes]

When I was in the Air Force about 28 years ago, stationed outside of Madrid, Spain, I used to play in Retiro Park. Not for money, but to attract the Honey's for my crew. I was also known to pull out my Soprano on the Metro and serenade a Senorita or two from time-to-time. :~) That was a ton-o-fun, man, those were the days....playing at Balboa Jazz and Whiskey Jazz with artists like Art Blakey and Teddy Harris.

[Vortex]

How about your repotoire (sp?)? How long a set do your really have to be able to do (in general, crowds do cycle around at different rates). Also, is the subway a good spot?

[Bill Mecca]

Funny story. My first wife worked in NYC . (wwll that IS funny, but not the point of this story!) we were in the city alot.

almost every trip down to Chinatown, or the Village we would see this same tenor sax player.

Never heard him play a note, everytime we saw him he was packing up his horn. Heck I don't even know if he ever could play, but there was always a decent amount of cash in his can.

crowds move so fast in NYC that you might not ever have to blow a note;-)

did see another guy once playing with a boom box, originals and he was selling his CD. The Picture of him in my memory reminds me of Craig Handy, coulda been...

as for tunes, I would suggest something with a strong, recognizable melody.

And if I happen to be walking by, play some Jr. Walker... like Cleo's Mood ;-)

[Vortex]

Anyone happen to know off-hand if Pittsburgh requires a license?

[kcp]

Actually Bill, the "close the case and pretend you are ready to leave" trick works sometimes... ok I confess to have done it a few times when things were going slow :roll: It's hillarious though; all of a suddent you get a bunch of people going: "You're leaving already?? Oh please don't go..." :twisted: and you to reply : "hmmm... okay, if you insist" :roll:
But the thing is you can't spend all day pretending to leave. People actually have to hear you play in order to want you to stay.

Vortex: Call at the City Hall of Pittsburgh, that's the best way to find-out. And they'll inform you about every rules and legislation that you'll need to know.

[Dog Pants]

As a well known patron and critic, of Streetsaxers, I would add: If you're gonna play, play loud enough to be heard! If that sounds obvious, well so it should be. Just yesterday, I was fortunate enough to have a tenor/bari duo play for 4 hours right out the front of my office building. (my co-workers reckoned I'd set this up for my own benefit :) ) Both were good players, (I know one personally) but the bari could hardly be heard. One of my criteria for rating how much $ I'm gonna give a streetsax player, is "how far away can I walk and still hear you?" I know how hard it is to do the accapella thing, and I'll gice my loose change to anyone brave enough to get out in public and streetsax. I do think however that if your gonna stand on that corner with a sax in your hands then for pity's sake, make a noise! The most I've ever given a streetsaxer was $50 bucks. He wasn't playing anything fancy or fast, but I heard him from 3 blocks away clear as a bell. He had a nice tone and more importantly he played with emotion and feeling rather than just standing there noodling and looking too cool for school. Kim, I never did get the chance to check out your site when it was up. If you still have all the info that was on it in html or doc format, would you consider emailing it to interested parties.? I promise I won't stalk you. :)

[sax_appeal]

I've often busked in Adelaide's Rundle Mall, and even though he's never heard me play Dog Pants thinks I'm fantastic.

You do need a licence to busk in the mall. It's great fun though and I usually get about $25 for every hour I play.

[Dog Pants]

You must be doin' something right Sax appeal! As I write this, I have a young fella and his folks coming over in about 10min to check out the YTS-62 I. I'm offering them a pretty good discount price because they were referred by a good mate. Main hassle in all of this wasn't cleaning the horn, (the horn's in great fettle!) but cleaning up the friggin' appartment. :)

[sax_appeal]

My secret: Vivaldi.

People love it, beats the heck out of jazz. I've heard that the standard rate in the mall is about $15 an hour, so its a great place to busk.

...Is it Christmas yet?

[kcp]

Dog Pants: My old website is still up http://www.geocities.com/b-flat/ but all that's there are sax-related informations, such as Paul Coats articles that I've translated in French (the site used to be bilingual)

As for the stuff that was removed, it was busking stories much like a StreetSax Diary kind of thing. I have made back-ups of these but unfortunately I want to keep that stuff ...I have plans for this.

The rest of what was on my site were pictures and some sound samples of my playing back then which I'm very embarassed to listen at today :lol:

[BlueNote]

Don't forget about signs!

I have found that if you have a sign up against your case, you'll recieve more attention from ongoers. To have better odds of getting more money, be untruthful and make up something on the sign -- for example, a cause, like "Help children in need. Proceeds go to AIDS foundation" or something. It's decieving and can be mean at times, but if you need money, well...

More of them will show sympathy or gratitude for you if you tell them that you're not just playing for money. :)

Also, don't dress up, but don't wear filthy clothes. Jeans, a t-shirt and sneakers should be just right for street busking.

Just my 2 cents. :)

[DanY]

Bluenote- Are you serious? Lying about collecting for charity is a serious offence (not to mention low down and yuck).

I hope you are joking.

[Vortex]

Yeah that's pretty low. Something like "Need to pay for flight back to NYC ASAP", while still dishonest, is at least a little less mean-spirited.

[Bubba924]

Maybe if you said like 10 percent to blah blah charity on the sign. Then you could be telling the truth and get the extra cash. :twisted:

[Bubba924]

Do you guys ever use fake books when you play? I did busking one time at a mall when I was in 6th grade and played christmas songs for alto sax out of a book. I used the money to buy an alto sax of my own. BUT NOW I PLAY TENOR. lol. Gees that was a long time ago. what 4 years? gees Im getting old.

[kcp]

Bubba924: I avoid as much as I can to play written music. I know most of my repertoire by heart. I do bring a book that contains tunes that I haven't learned yet or that are hard to remember.

But above all, I would advise against using fakebooks or staff music sheets when street playing for two reasons:

1) If you have a fakebook or sheet music, you need:
a) a foldable music stand (the other kind is just too heavy to carry)
b) an army of paperclips to hold the pages open

Problem is, that isn't enough. If you play out on a windy day, the page will hold open, the book will hold onto the stand, but the stand will keep falling. And people often accidentally knock it down. In order to hold the stand yo'll need to put at its base either, a bag of sand or bricks. From a street player's point of view, it's already enough that you have to carry your sax and the case (I pray for you it's not a bari), emergency repair kit, water and food if you intend to spend the whole day street playing. Imagine if on top of that you'd have to carry fakebooks, a stand and a bag of sand or bricks :x

All I do if I MUST read-off from my music book, I place paperclips to hold the page open and just throw the book flat on the ground. I can't see much of what's written but enough to make some good guesses. It's an excellent way to learn how to fake tune :twisted: :lol:

2) If you're reading music you're not looking at the people passing-by
You need to make eye-contact with them on a frequent bassis. You would be very suprised at how many people whish they were you, playing sax on the streets, complete freedom, no contraints, no boss to tell them what to do. Also you would be very suprised at how many whish they could talk to you. You play sax on the streets = You are the incarnation of coolness 8) People want to get close to you. If you make eye-contact with them, they feel that you've noticed them, that's what they want. They want to feel special. And you job is to make them feel special

One of my favorite things to do when I can, is sit at one end of a long city bench, leaving plenty of room for folks to sit next to me as I play. It takes a little while but eventually one person finally dares to come sit on the bench. The next thing you know, you got 2 or 3 more sitting on the bench with you and an audience standing aroound. When that happens, I always take time to take a pause between some tunes and talk to the people. I ask them where they are from, what tune they'd like to hear next, etc.. I take the time to listen to what they say to me and answer their questions. They always got questions and all of them have something interesting they are dying to tell you.

People don't get the chance to talk to musicians very often. Only street musicians can do that, so do it! Plus when you take the time to listen and let them open-up to you, people tend to give you dollar bills more often than small pocket change.

[Dog Pants]

Read Kim's last post, then read it again! It is VERY perceptive. It IS all about connecting with people. Kim, I reckon it's about time you wrote that book! :)

[jazzbluescat]

Bubba924: I avoid as much as I can to play written music. I know most of my repertoire by heart. I do bring a book that contains tunes that I haven't learned yet or that are hard to remember.

But above all, I would advise against using fakebooks or staff music sheets when street playing for two reasons:

1) If you have a fakebook or sheet music, you need:
a) a foldable music stand (the other kind is just too heavy to carry)
b) an army of paperclips to hold the pages open

Problem is, that isn't enough. If you play out on a windy day, the page will hold open, the book will hold onto the stand, but the stand will keep falling. And people often accidentally knock it down. In order to hold the stand yo'll need to put at its base either, a bag of sand or bricks. From a street player's point of view, it's already enough that you have to carry your sax and the case (I pray for you it's not a bari), emergency repair kit, water and food if you intend to spend the whole day street playing. Imagine if on top of that you'd have to carry fakebooks, a stand and a bag of sand or bricks :x

All I do if I MUST read-off from my music book, I place paperclips to hold the page open and just throw the book flat on the ground. I can't see much of what's written but enough to make some good guesses. It's an excellent way to learn how to fake tune :twisted: :lol:.................

Now Kim, go on an' tell us 'bout your roadie and equipment truck. :lol:

[BTW: I ain't the busking type, but, when I play outside I use old fashioned clothes pins 'steada paperclips.]

[kcp]

Now Kim, go on an' tell us 'bout your roadie and equipment truck. :lol:

Uh-oh... did somebody tell you about my latest goof??

I been making a small come-back in the street performing world after a year absence or so. My favorite tenor not being in such good shape (see other thread: http://saxontheweb.myforums.net/viewtopic.php?t=16818)
I figgured what the heck, I'm gonna take my new bari for a little stroll downtown. It was the Formula1 Grand Prix in Montréal so the streets downtown were packed with people and I knew exactly the spot where to go play bari by the moolight.

It was "officially" the first time I take the bari (I had taken it out once before but it was for a photo session - see: http://saxontheweb.myforums.net/viewtopic.php?p=110919&highlight=#110919) but I have been planning taking the bari for street playing. I'm kinda small (5'3", 110 lbs) so I've come-up with some way to carry this big thing around.

A couple days after I bought my bari, I went to Canadian Tire and bought this monster dolly - :lol: my bf still can't over this - So anyway, I place the bari case vertically and strap it to the dolly. It's a lot less heavy that way but you still gotta push the thing. I'm in good shape though and I'm used to do a lot of walking so that's not such a big deal for me. Also, the good thing is that people get out of your way when they see you coming with a monster case strapped onto a monster dolly... I think that's the part I like most 8)

So yeah, right, back to the story... So I went playing downtown for the Formula1 Grand Prix crowd. I played about an hour or two, it was fun and all. Then when it was the time to go back home, I knew this would take me a while since I was pretty far from home, and I was hoping to get back hopefully before midnight. Instead of taking the money out of the case and put it in my pocket like I'm used to do, I pushed the money into the case's side compartment. I closed the case, straped it vertically on the dolly and started pushing. Then at one point I was crossing a street, as I went down the side-walk, the dolly sorta bumped and I heard the sound of money falling.

Immediately, I freaked-out cause I thought the money went out of the side compartment and fell all over the sax and coins getting stuck in the mechanism. So I quickly pulled-out on the side, unstrapped the whole thing, open the case and I'm looking for the money... where's the money??? I searched the case. It was gone! I knew there was for around 60 or 80$ worth of small change in there, where did it go?? :shock: That's when I realized that there was a small hole in the case's side compartment. The money went down in there inside the case under the contour foam... :evil: #@&*$%!!! :evil:

There wasn't much I could do about it, but hurry home and find a way to get the money out of there later. I got home a little past midnight. Took the bari out of its case, took the case, turned-it upside down and shake it until I was nearly out of strenght :lol:

I managed to get 40$ out of it, but there is still more money left inside. I can hear it. So I shake my bari case a little bit everyday... It's my new favorite hobby now :lol:

[Bill Mecca]

well, Kim, at least you'll never be broke when you take the bari with you! ;-)

As I was reading your exploits I thought..."there's a cartoon in there someplace.." the Monster Bari Rally...:-0

[gary]

Maaan, that's just a funny story. ROTFL !!

[kcp]

well, Kim, at least you'll never be broke when you take the bari with you! ;-)

:idea: Next time it's my turn to pay for the beer after band practice, I'll know what to do :twisted:

Thanks Bill! :D

[jazzbluescat]

Scenario: "Hey, lady, spare change?"
Kim: shake shake shake #@^%*#$ shake shake shake ^%&*#$ etc.

:lol:

[JL]

Regarding the fake books, written music, etc., I once played in a "soul band" as part of a horn section. We had charts and some of our gigs were outdoors. It was a constant battle with the wind blowing. Clothespins help but you have to mess with them everytime you move to the next tune. I hated using charts for this and several other reasons. Now I play in a blues band and the only piece of paper I deal with is a set list. I also find I play much better if I memorize my parts. Solos are improvised, of course. Anyhow, unless you are part a large ensemble where charts may be necessary, I'd recommend learning to play without the charts and fake books. Memorize tunes and head arrangements.

[jaankaden]

kim's stories and posts never ever quit. it's hilarious the kinda stuff that happens to saxophonists. of course, it helps if you've got the sense of humor to laugh at yourself and appreciate the utter madness.

i busk in singapore from time to time, mostly whenever i happen to be visiting and haven't got any gigs lined up for the night.

i have to agree with kim on the sheer number of people who actually really want to talk to you, and even be you! you can just see it in their eyes when they hang around listening to you, mouths agape, wanting to say something but not really knowing what to.

that said, her earlier post on the workings and methods of busking is just advice worth its weight in gold! it helps that i bend over waaay backwards, i serve a nice dish of Smooth Jazz Ala Kenny G.

you got it right on the money when you said jazz doesn't bring in the moolah. when i play it, people normally just breeze pass, while some actually give me weird stares. but when i turn on the soprano and kenny g-ish stuff, hooo boy, i've got an audience, and a pretty big one to boot. they just stop in their tracks, stand there staring, and when the song's over, clap frantically before walking up with wads of cash. haha. oh happy day.

of course, money isn't my only incentive. i'm not that shallow. i did pick up the saxophone for other reasons ya know? yup, i sure did. women. haha. and it sure hasn't disappointed thus far!!

[Perfect Pitch]

To have better odds of getting more money, be untruthful

ROTFLMAO :lol:

Sounds like my old business school lecturer

[IanJ]

So which songs tend to work the best. I saw it mentioned that song that are more recognizable but which songs do you use since there is such a variety of music and musical tastes?

[jaankaden]

stick to melodic stuff if you're in it for the money. jazz, as nice as it can sound to us and a few others, just don't appeal to the main crowd. and if you're really, really in it for the money, just play kenny g.

[kcp]

Tunes that worked really great for me were like international Standards such as "La Vie en Rose" by Edith Piaf or Any Aznavour or Charles Trenest songs. Also the inevitable Unforgettable :wink: Stardust, Misty, Smoke gets in your eyes, Autumn Leaves (when it wasn't July :lol: ). There was All of me and Fly me to the moon also, wich I noticed worked espescially well on American tourists. Also anything by Gershwin (wich is ok by me) and oh yeah, the Pink Panter Theme song :dazed:

Anyhow, for my own sanity, I used to throw in some callypso tunes and improvised blues wich I turned into a very reconisable version of Billie's Bounce, Anthropology and such - Beleive it or not, people loved that. Several had no idea what I was playing, but they liked it. It was the only way I found to serve them some Parker stuff

[IanJ]

Thanks for the response but would you happen to know a good book that has good busking musicin it you could recomend or maybe a some sheet music somehwere?

[kcp]

I don't think there are any music book specifically intended for buskers - In the end, each busker make his own choice in terms of selecting repertoire. The key is to go for "main stream" material, yet there is no rule about that. I know a street sax man who almost exclusively plays Coltane stuff. He seem to be doing quite well most of the time, thoough I think he would earn more if he'd play more mainstream tunes.

There is no stereotype for the street musician. It could be you brother, your next door neighbor, your family doctor... it could be anyone and so, there can be as many different reasons for playing on the streets as there are different people.

So, the thing to keep in mind is why you are into street playing. Are you in for the money or are you in for the pleasure? Do you just want to try it because you are curious about busking? Do you want to do it as an excuse to practice an extend your repertoire? Do you want to do it for relaxation like during lunch time or after work?...

If you're in for the money, in that case it is recommendable that you play more mainstream stuff. If you want to try to find-out what street performing is like, I suggest that you try as many different kinds of repertoire, experiment and find-out what's best for you. If you're in for practicing, relaxing or for pleasure, for God's sake play what you like!

Each street performer who give advice here can only speak of their own experience, what works for them. But the truth is, there is no real winning formula for street playing. What works one day, can very well not work the next day. There are too many factors such as weather, location, time of the year, time of the month (just to name a few) that can influence how much you'll earn.

There is only one street musician, a sax player, that I know who had the "winning" formula every day. I had the pleasure to share my spot with him for a whole summer about 12 years ago. This guy never earned less than 300$ per evening that he performed. He was doing it for pleasure and all he'd play was free improv. But he had a playing style completely of his own, completely unique and what a talented player he was!! At the time, I was very new to street playing and sax playing. I learned a lot of things from him during that summer. I tried to imitate his playing and I guess some of my playing style today is a bit influenced by his but I still can't make 300$ everytime I play on the streets.

ok... so here goes my novel of the day 8)

[sax_appeal]

Your novel...?

You should write a book on busking. I know I would be interested in something like that with tips andf especcially all of your interesting anecdotes.

[Vortex]

I've got an interesting busking idea - playing on the sidewalk outside a church as service lets out, preferably in a more urban setting. I bet some good soul music would go a long way to bring in the smiles.

[soulsax]

I've read most of the post here. My PC is like my tenor, belly up :( so I have not seen this thread before yesterday. I have been playing on the streets for almost 15 yrs but the last 4 yrs have been on a regular basis. Two in Galveston Texas, two in Houston Tx. I play downtown Houston average 3 to 6 times a month. I think I learn something new each time too. Dog, your the type of fan I dig man! A 50, now that adds up fast. to tell you the truth, the biggest single tip I have ever recieved was a 50 about 2 plus yrs ago in Galveston. I had some tips that came in the form of a 20, then a 10, from the same people. I got a 20 from a chick once, then a 20 from her boyfriend ten min later :wink: Im in the library so am limited on time, but would to write some more later on. Here's a few "other" tips I have gotten in recent months. Euro coins, other coins from Canada, and South Arerica, a bunch of video game tokens. A big AA token? Pills :? , Two cross's with Jesus saves on thim. Beads, a few red roses. Outside the tip jar ? A few hooter flashes, mooned by two chicks once, a few quality mixed drinks. E mail adresses with invitations to have a place to visit and stay for free, from Mexico to Italy. Yea its got its ups and downs for sure. Low pay, high pay, no pay, its all just another street sax day...

[Face Ache Mike]

I really fancy a go at busking! My tutor reccomends it for conquering nerves. I think I play well when Im alone but playing in front of anyone or when recording I get distracted and mess up. I`m not bothered if people throw money (so long as their aim is good!) as my incentive is just to get more practice and overcome the nerves.

So heres my idea... Set up in a wide open part of town where people arent forced to walk right past me and where I can really give a good blow. Id have a sign that said "Saving for lessons" then just get on wth it :eek: Either people like it or feel sorry for me and contribute. :glasses1:

[km]

a few additional thoughts - based on a sample of two hours of busking in the UK

1 - people are not as critical as you fear - if you play a bum note, the group that hears it wander off & you have a new group immediately afterwards who never heard it

2 - at least in the beginning, playing solo in public is exhausting - physically & emotionally - you will be a lot more tired - and exhilerated - than you anticipate

3 - even if you take a leak before you start, you will need to go again after a while - you will be drinking water to keep your mouth moist & the constant abdominal pressure if you are playing from the diaphragm will lead to a call of nature - which is a good point to stop - 'cos when you come back someone will have taken your pitch if it's any good

4 - playing from the head is much more satisfying than playing from music - you make eye contact & can see people's reactions, watching the passing crowd is always fascinatinmg & the opportunity to play to a particular person or group is much more satisfying than simply reading the score - and you can acknowledge any gifts without losing your place!!

km

[Leon]

I was home visiting my mother in Seattle once and my mother took me downtown saying, "you have to hear this tenor player who plays on the street." We arrive to hear the scruffy looking guy way past his prime playing a tenor that was way out of tune, his tone warbling, his phrasing awkward, but with a kind of sweetness to his sound that managed to be present in spite of it all. But he was pretty bad. The thing was, he knew every song in the book, and played without sheet music. (Even if he was playing mostlly in the same key). I thought, "how can a guy sound this bad and know so many tunes?" I tipped him and had a chance to chat. Turned out he was a trumpet player who had his trumpet stolen and had borrowed a friends tenor to play until he had made enought for another trumpet.

[Jedi2427]

some thoughts...I have busked a bunch in many US cities.

Great for over coming fears.

I have made from $20-$200 in an outing just going off on blues.

Some people tell me I am great, and some snobs gave me **** and took thier tip out of my case because I screwed up "Take Five"

Not to be sexist, but my experience is more guys listen and tip, but the women who really listen to me tipped well.

If you tell people you practice on the street they either think your cool or a bum...My girlfriend thinks both!

Your sound gets huge, and you are in for the work out of your life.

I personally try to stay mindfull of playing Funky.

A great way to practice after hours if you live in an apartment.

I love it, and with my best friend who is a drummer, we have the time of our lives busking.

[Face Ache Mike]

Long time since busking was talked about! I just called my local council to enquire about a licence and got some very encouraging info. I don`t need one! I`m free to go anywhere I like providing I use common sense and move on if asked by a policeman. The lady said if I were to go in front of a shop, for instance, I could be expected to get moved but I said I wanted to go in one of the parks and the town centre is the last place Id want to go.

I overheard her speaking to a colleague who said "they (buskers) have nothing to do with us, its up to the Police if anyone complains". Seems my town is very busker friendly - I`ve never heard of any such problems and Ive lived here all of my 42 years :D

Can`t wait for the weather to dry out and warm up! :flower:

[Mark_vi]

I know kind of late but why not revive the thread, I played in seattle a few years back and found that Jazz got the best tips that and christmas songs (in DECEMBER) were huge!!! I got gig offers and some guy wanted me and my friend to play in his ska band, but not being a big ska band fan turned down the offer. the weirdest tip we got were 2 apples lol and we averaged ( about 10 times) $40+ an hour roughly $22 an hour each, and one time we made $500 in 2 hours near toula's (a jazz club) when some guy came out turned out to be a pro playing at toula's that night, he had some of his friends come out and they all gave us $20 or more each!

[mikesmodern]

I haven't seen this addresed, but as far as the structure of each tune, how long and far do you take it? The head a couple of times, two chorus' of solo, back to head? Do you keep it short and sweet? Do you keep the soloing close to the head melody, as you don't have backing musicians? I know this comes with the degree of skill per player, but say, you're not Sonny Rollins, and still want to do this, are fewer and fuller notes played with feeling the best idea? What do you do to keep from "falling off the horse" during each tune. I would guess that Kim has some pretty good ideas concerning this.

[Pinnman]

If you choose the right pitch, you won't have to play very much! I saw a saxophonist at an Underground station in London who played a few notes as each train emptied and then sat back and waited for the next. Quite a few people shelled out from each train. Nice work (or lack of it) if you can get it!

[martinc]

If the pitches you intend to play are a bit dodgy...consider using an older slightly rougher horn. Maybe not your shiny perfect mark 6.....This from someone who lost a nice Gibson acoustic defending himself against a screwdriver weilding crackhead....Did make a satisfying THUD...when i belted him though :)

[rabbit]

km & Pinnman,

O.K., so I gather "pitch" is U.K. (& Aus., N.Z.?) for site, location.
Is this correct & can you give any history/origin of this usage?

thanks,
rabbit

[km]

"pitch (PERSUASION) - noun [C]
1 a speech or act which attempts to persuade someone to buy or do something:
The man in the shop gave me his (sales) pitch about quality and reliability.
She made a pitch for the job but she didn't get it.
[+ to infinitive] The city made a pitch to stage the Olympics.

2 UK a place in a public area where a person regularly sells goods or performs:
The flower seller was at his usual pitch outside the station.

pitch verb [I or T] MAINLY US
to try to persuade someone to do something:
She pitched her idea to me over a business lunch.
They are pitching for business at the moment.

(from Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)



does this help? sales pitch or pitching an idea are perhaps the most widely used examples

best wishes

km

[Pinnman]

Agreed. According to Chambers 21st Century Dictionary, a pitch is - inter alia - a street trader's station. I do not know the etymology, but presumably it is where a trader pitched his stall in much the same way as pitching a tent.

[rabbit]

Thank you, gentlemen.