I'm sure Bill doesn't mind if I re-post this one that he did around 2014. To me, he has his finger right on the pulse! Comments?

"Interesting how the US works, over in the UK & Europe they don’t hire arranger players they just hire musicians to entertain, however if a keyboard player started using full styles they would be unlikely to get another gig, as the owners would just turn round and say what’s the point as I can just stick a tape on and get the same at a much lower price.

Another thing with the UK & Europe is that they are heavily into medleys so playing on the fly is a must, (Songbooks and full styles just get in the way) with most medleys needing to be created to what the crowd wants at the time. (They also like to see the player doing something not just pressing buttons unless he is been hired as a DJ).

If the musician wants to get something as original then they record either a Midi or Audio backing for the parts they cannot play live. (For this to work the Midi or Audio has to be played and recorded by the player, as if the backing is commercial it is easily picked up by the punters, and doesn’t go down well with them)

Finally home arranger players that use styles to sound good at home don’t what to hear pro players using full styles but prefer to hear what the musician can do with the board. (They will usually walk out or ignore the player if he uses the stuff they can play themselves at home by pressing a button)

Music also seems to be more focussed on certain styles in the US, whereas in the UK & Europe you will find both young and old enjoying styles from Big Band to Lady Ga Ga (In the same nights entertainment) as all they are interested in is being entertained by a musician who can actually play."