Before going on stage, me and Millie did our own breathe works and did a body shake to try and shake all of our nerves out. I think this actually really helped because I didn’t feel as nervous going on as I did when I saw my family arrive. I think it helped knowing that if we were nervous then all we had to do was look at each other because we were in it together.
Before the set started Millie said “bare with me, I’m not that good at performing live” and the audience laughed. I think the audience laughing helped settle our nerves a little too because it felt more comforting and less formal. This was also great crowd interaction and we used our weakness to gain a strength, which was joking about not being good at performing to make us confident. She also asked how their night was going so she already formed a pretty good connection between us and them and it felt more relaxed because we knew they were friendly.
At the start of “Reckless” I count us in so it shows good chemistry between us because we’re actually interacting. The first verse was a very strong start, both in time, in key and we had a strong rhythm. However, when we got to the pre-chorus, I think Millie started going higher too soon which then didn’t match the guitar and then made it sound a little out of key, but I just kept playing and she kept singing so I’m certain that the audience didn’t even notice. Throughout the rest of the pre-chorus, Millie’s voice stayed strong and in key so we pulled it round fast.
The chorus had a strong rhythm that built up really well. We both stayed in time together and it was a very strong chorus. I think the transition from the chorus to the post-chorus was really smooth, when I broke down the strumming pattern to a single strum. We both came in on the second verse on time too.
The second chorus was a little bit shakier on the vocals than the first one. I think this is probably because she was nervous for the upcoming high notes. However, we kept going and the rhythm and timing was still really good though. I think the bridge was shaky because she over thought it but it’s good she still tried. Overall, the song was difficult but I think we did really well. For the most part, we stayed in key and in time and we kept a strong rhythm. The use of dynamics really allowed the chorus to be as powerful as it could be. However, I do think we should’ve rehearsed the bridge some more because it was very difficult and I think the nerves prevented her from reaching that note.
“Jolene” was our strongest song from the start. The vast use of different techniques really allowed the song to shine as a whole. The palm muting in the verses really allowed the tone in Millie’s voice to breathe and it worked really well. The chorus’ were very powerful because they were fully strummed out in a nice rhythmic way. However, in the second verse I did forget some of the chords. I kept going so you can barely notice but we stopped rehearsing this song as we knew it was already very powerful so we should’ve probably rehearsed it more at the end so I didn’t forget. We had really good communication and chemistry again in the last chorus because she turned round and reminded it was the slower part. Overall, this song was still our strongest and I think we really give it life with the powerful strumming patterns and different techniques used.
I introduced my compositions before I played them and I think I looked and sounded quite confident. I think my body language was a little closed off so if I were to do it again then I’d try be more relaxed. I managed to talk about my upcoming EP and promote it. I walked quite confidently too and I think my whole vibe came off as very confident too, which is good because then they’ll feel that energy and enjoy my set more. I also took a breathe before I played so I could compose myself a little bit.
To begin, section A was played really well. I held the chords down for the right amount of time, allowing the audience to just feel the chords for a little bit. I played them confidently and I didn’t slip any notes. Section B was played almost perfectly. Hearing it back, I feel like I may have played it a little too fast but I didn’t slip any notes so the audience were non the wiser and I just went straight into section C. Section C was when I started to mess up because I played it too fast and tried to keep up with that pace but I slipped a couple notes to start with. However, I just kept playing and even though they probably noticed, I recovered myself really well in the rest of the sections. If I were to play again, I wouldn’t have started so fast and I would’ve tried to compose myself a little better because I only sped up because I started to feel my nerves.
When returning to section A, the audience clapped too early but I just shook my head to say that it’s not over yet and they laughed so it made me feel a little at ease. Going back into section B was much stronger and I played much more confidently, not slipping any notes or playing too fast. If I were to do this section again, I’d probably work on dynamics because when section B developed a little further, it was all the same level so it didn’t feel as powerful as I wanted it to. Section C went perfectly the second time and I didn’t slip any notes! I think it sounded very powerful this time because I had previously messed it up a little.
They clapped early at the end again so I did end it a little early but overall the piece sounded really good. If I were to play it again, I’d slow it down and really focus on the dynamics to create the emotion I wanted instead of speeding it up.
Going into my second piece, I do feel like I could’ve waited a little longer before playing it, just to make me seem a little more confident and so I could really allow myself to feel the pride when they were clapping. However, this piece went almost perfectly. I didn’t slip any notes and I think the dynamics really gave the piece the swaying motion that the original piece has. The only thing I’d really change was the speed. I think I could’ve slowed it down a little because it’s already a really short piece. However, it sounded really smooth.
At the end, I reminded them of my EP to plug it again, showing confidence but also using the performance as a promotional tool. If I were to perform again, I’d really hone in on the timing and the dynamics of each piece. I did look really confident and used the performance for promotion but I think I’d of messed up less if I maintained calm instead of rushing the first sections.