Communication – 10 hot tips

Check out this video (the amazing Marc Krause & Bron Harrison) and let me show you my top 10 tips for being a good communicator when accompanying somebody else in performance. When you are in the audience sometimes it is difficult to see these so let me dissect and point out these little gems…

1. Signal to start (0.13) – Before we start playing, get comfortable and then signal to the other player that you are ready
2. Look (throughout the video) – Look at the other player as much as possible.
3. Smile (0.39 onwards) – smiling is a way to tell your fellow musician that you have their back and you are watching them.
4. Count (0.44-0.50) – you will see me counting “five… six… seven…” counting out aloud/lip reading the other player to confirm where we are up to in the phrase really really helps. (1.46) Marc counts us both in. (3.11) Marc counts while he plays.
5. Hi-hat (0.53 onwards) – use your left foot to keep in time with your partner (or other musicians)
6. Use your booooh-day (your body) (1.11) – yep, get that body moving in time with the music – you’d be surprised how much this communicates pulse, energy and positivity to the other player.
7. Nod (2.12) particularly when there is a change in tempo, nod to show you you have established the new pulse. (2.50) – nod to show the beginning of a rhythmical phrase or run.
8. Accent (2.20) you will see I accented my entry so it was obvious when I entered. I use accents throughout the piece to intitaite a sense of pulse, particularly when shifting to a new rhythmical concept.
9. Dynamics (2.47) – again using the body to exaggerate dynamics.
10. Throw your sticks in the air (3.06) – this is to signify a stop. Make it super obvious what is happening.

Thank you and congratulations to Marc Krause for a fantastic and fun performance!

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