UNIT 12 (Task 6) Evaluation

I think the recordings off my EP were of a good quality, but would've been even better if I knew a lot more about mastering than just the basics I learn and picked up. I recorded my songs with my Rode NT1A microphone which is commonly used in the studio by musicians, however the acoustics weren't very good as I recorded them in my bedroom. As I did the course from home this was the easiest and most practical way of getting my songs reorded, however next time I will make the most of the studios I have access too. On the other hand this meant that I learned a few things about using recording programs, such as how much reverb is suited best to my original material and how to level tracks as well as how to set up my own equipment ready for recording. One of the roles I really focused on was advertising myself as a musician and the music I was recording. I made weekly singing videos on my YouTube channel, some of which were my original songs, and shared it on my other social media accounts, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. My final event was an open mic in a local pub where I live called 'The Alfred's Head'. I have played there a few times before and invited some friends and family friends to come along and watch me. There was a very relaxed feel to the event. Others who had seen me perform at other open mics saw my poster that I posted on my social medias and came along. There were a lot of young people at the pub where I performed, and my target audience is people in their early teenage years to young adults. There were a few older people who were talking amongst themselves but the younger people seemed to listen and appreciate my music more. As I didn't perform at the O2, I didn't have to fund my FM, but I was in some of the lessons where this was discussed and am confident that I have a clear understanding of crowd funding and that I could use this knowledge in the future. Crowd funding is a very important part of a musicians career as without it, they wouldn't be able to play at many events such as the O2. I think that the reasonable price for a ticket can vary hugely depending on the artist and the venue. If the venue is large and well known then the tickets are likely to cost more as the artist can invest in putting on a big show with the confidence that their fans will be happy to fund for it, whereas if a venue is not very well known and has musicians who are just starting out playing there, then they're less likely to pay for big lights, a stage set up ect. I didn't have much of a stage setup apart from my instruments as the pub was small and not used to hosting big events. I bought my own guitar with me but because I had played at this pub a few times before, I knew that they had their own equipment. The only thing that I knew wasn't already there was a keyboard, and I wanted to see if there was a more practical option other than bringing my own. I contacted the land lord of another pub whose open mics I often play at and asked him if I could borrow his, which he said yes to. Something that didn't go to plan was the mic stand dropping towards the end of my third song, 'Naive'. It dropped below where I could sing into so I had to stop but quickly apologised, got the man who was running the open mic to adjust it and went straight into the next song. I have learned that some difficulties can't be avoided or planned for when performing, and that just going with it and quickly moving on is the best way to deal with instead of making a big deal about it. I think my nerves defiantly effected my vocal performance which I was a bit annoyed about, but I'm just glad I was able to perform the songs without many issues. I am knew to performing my original songs in front of an audience and it's defiantly more daunting than performing covers, as you take their reaction more personally, so I think that if I was to have done anything differently I would have played more original songs to people before the event, such as family members and friends, to get used to the feeling of putting my songs out there. Before this project I didn't know anything at all about planning my own gig as I was used to performing at events organised by others. I know realise how much work and planning goes into it and am confident I could do it again without any help. As I would like to go on to making a living from performing at my own events, every skill I have learned throughout this project can be used to help me in the near future, including all the skills I have learned about recording and creating my own album.