Being a good open mic host may depend on what type of open mic you are hosting. But generally speaking,
it is all about your performers who are the ones making it an open mic, NOT the host. To me, the best gauge
of how successful an open mic is shows in how many players come to play each time on a consistent basis.
If the host plays more than 4-5 songs, or rarely gets off the stage; or worse yet, acts like they are doing the
guest performer a favor by getting off the stage to let the guest play, that defeats the real intent of an open mic.
Venues that consistently have lots of players coming and playing every week are the ones I have the greatest
respect for. The open mic who consistently has the most players is the Clarence Center Café, followed by
Moonshiners. They are currently the 2 top open mics in the most recent rating.
Another big issue is sound adjustment. A great host is someone who is right there fixing a sound anomaly during the second or
third song of a set. A good host who is always trying to make their players sound good. If the host is willing to
make adjustments in between or during songs if something is not right, that is the ideal.
Another issue is collaboration. If someone comes up to add to the performer(s), do they ADD to or take away
from the performance. If you is sing harmony with a performer(s), know the lyrics. If you are backing the
person(s) up on drums, lead guitar or bass, how good are you at following people? Never should the house
band or the players who come up to "help" TAKE AWAY from the performer.
I will give you a good example:
Anyone that plays at the Sportsmen's Tavern Open Jam on Tuesday evenings, you will notice the house band
plays along with each performer(s). They follow perfectly. This is how it is supposed to work. The may not even
know the song, but often times they follow what the performer is doing so well, the average listener cannot tell
that the band does not know the song because they pull it off so well. This is a superb band, with Mark Panfil
(on keyboard?), Randy Bolam on drums,Duane Hall on lead/rhythm guitar, Jim Sweet on bass, and Doug Yoemans
on lead guitar. So if you want to see how itis done, watch these guys. Jim Sweet almost always can sing some
excellent harmony on the song to make the song sound even better.
Another good example:
The Clarence Center Open Mic. There are 2 performers there who learned how to play their respective instruments
playing along with other people at this open mic. One is Alyssa Wainwright on violin, the other is Lucas Honig on bass.
Both are exceptional musicians who can follow just about any song regardless of whether they know it or not. It almost never
matters what key the performer is in. 99.5% of the time, the songs sound fantastic with Alyssa or Lucas playing along,
and this is the way it should be. They only play when asked and almost never disappoint.
it is all about your performers who are the ones making it an open mic, NOT the host. To me, the best gauge
of how successful an open mic is shows in how many players come to play each time on a consistent basis.
If the host plays more than 4-5 songs, or rarely gets off the stage; or worse yet, acts like they are doing the
guest performer a favor by getting off the stage to let the guest play, that defeats the real intent of an open mic.
Venues that consistently have lots of players coming and playing every week are the ones I have the greatest
respect for. The open mic who consistently has the most players is the Clarence Center Café, followed by
Moonshiners. They are currently the 2 top open mics in the most recent rating.
Another big issue is sound adjustment. A great host is someone who is right there fixing a sound anomaly during the second or
third song of a set. A good host who is always trying to make their players sound good. If the host is willing to
make adjustments in between or during songs if something is not right, that is the ideal.
Another issue is collaboration. If someone comes up to add to the performer(s), do they ADD to or take away
from the performance. If you is sing harmony with a performer(s), know the lyrics. If you are backing the
person(s) up on drums, lead guitar or bass, how good are you at following people? Never should the house
band or the players who come up to "help" TAKE AWAY from the performer.
I will give you a good example:
Anyone that plays at the Sportsmen's Tavern Open Jam on Tuesday evenings, you will notice the house band
plays along with each performer(s). They follow perfectly. This is how it is supposed to work. The may not even
know the song, but often times they follow what the performer is doing so well, the average listener cannot tell
that the band does not know the song because they pull it off so well. This is a superb band, with Mark Panfil
(on keyboard?), Randy Bolam on drums,Duane Hall on lead/rhythm guitar, Jim Sweet on bass, and Doug Yoemans
on lead guitar. So if you want to see how itis done, watch these guys. Jim Sweet almost always can sing some
excellent harmony on the song to make the song sound even better.
Another good example:
The Clarence Center Open Mic. There are 2 performers there who learned how to play their respective instruments
playing along with other people at this open mic. One is Alyssa Wainwright on violin, the other is Lucas Honig on bass.
Both are exceptional musicians who can follow just about any song regardless of whether they know it or not. It almost never
matters what key the performer is in. 99.5% of the time, the songs sound fantastic with Alyssa or Lucas playing along,
and this is the way it should be. They only play when asked and almost never disappoint.
