After receiving some useful and, above all friendly, replies from all you good people in keyboard land I've got enough courage to ask, what some of you may think is a silly question. How does one make the transition from playing for personal enjoyment as an amateur, to playing semi-pro e.g. for old-folks homes etc ?. I've "mucked-about" at home for years now but I've often thought it would be nice to play for others, provided of course, that I'm good enough. I'm used to playing music in public as principal Eb bass player in the local brass band, but the nature of that particular instrument means that I rarely play any solos. I've got a good day job as a software engineer, so any engagements I may get would be mostly for fun.

Do you talented people think I'm being stupid, or is it worth trying to find a small gig or 2 ?. I can't play by ear, I've got to have the music in front of me.

Looking forward to some lively debate & ideas.

Keith