Hi

Funny how a tread tend to change some of the originally posted topic after a while....

Reading some of this posts make me start wondering about if it is the people who are the users of the musicians entertainment and music for dancing who is the main part here, or if it is the musicians own needs to show off and tell: "I'm the boss and Oh, am I good or what !!".

I think it is a very different matter if you perform a concert where people are there "only" to listen and enjoy your work while sit down in a chair, maybe just to judge your skills, and the music is your very favourite type to play, or if you are performing at a party of any kind where the peoples only goal mainly is to have a lot of fun, and you're playing mixed type of music to please the needs for that event, even if it is "your type" of music or not.

This is the way most, if not all auto-arranger keyboard players I know about do the jobs/gigs. Week-end dances, clubs, private parties, small restaurants etc. The kind of places where the guests in fact are "the boss", and if you don't manage to run your show the way it pleases your audience, well, then you're probably not going to be the entertainer in that area for any long time before somebody else has taken over.

If any of the people are drunk or not doese'nt really matter, they are also guests, and most likely they have been able to reach that condition by "goodies" available at the place. Besides of that, most often those of the peole who still have some common sence left, use to handle this matters wery well.

When your done with your job, and have played from your list of melodies in a way that the audience think they have choosen all songs all by themselves, then you're really good at it, and the only rule nessesary should be:
Keep your fingers, food and liquid away from my equipment, and Please, make love, not war - Let's have a party !!

Cheers
GJ