Hey guys…here is my 2-cents’ worth…. I am a current “dinosaur”…yes, my “breed” (sax players) are starting to become extinct… we used to be standard band members but then as the bands got smaller, we have become “icing on the cake”…and often times as you all probably know, “to ice or not to ice” is a matter of economics (or whether the guys controlling the band would just as soon make more money and have fewer live musicians). I have worked with several groups who use midi sequences and they hire me and maybe a guitar player to augment their appearance and sound only when they have gigs w/bigger crowds. I’ve seen where this is going, so I had to adapt to survive. If I didn’t get on the “sequence bandwagon” with the rest of the folks, I’d be limited to playing for free once in a while and my saxes would die in the closet with my enthusiasm (and chops). Last weekend, I played a gig by myself (have done this several times)… it was a private party and I took a Crate Taxi amp and my trusty Nomad Jukebox with sequences and stood up there and “fired away”… although it sometimes “feels weird” playing alone like that, I have not noticed the crowd caring too much that I am alone. In fact, I got a $60 tip last week at that gig. When I was packing up to go home, a group of younger musicians (Top 40 band) were coming in to set up. While I was clearing the way for them, they complimented me on my sound and my ability. So I guess the community is acknowledging where this is all going.

Wanting to be more marketable, several years ago I started working on my keyboard skills. I am almost good enough now to start taking the “keys” with me on these gigs, and I really wanted to take the 3K with me last weekend, but chickened out. I won’t do that much longer. I am becoming a good enough keyboard player that I will soon be able to gig with both instruments. I will have to use sequences when I play my sax, but will play with styles backing me when I play the keyboard.

Bottom line is that we all have a choice. The fact that DJ’s command 3 or more times what I make -- yet I’m the one who is constantly practicing…. is extremely disappointing to me. But it is a fact. So, I will keep trying to adapt and with luck and patience, I will transition and survive.

Randy