The main difference between OMB Arranger play and Live Band play.....OR, why it makes little difference what type of Arranger you play (professionally).

The reason is simple. With Live bands, people come to see the BAND PLAY; with Arranger-based OMB's, people come to see (and hear) the SINGER SING. If the singer is really, really good, it matters little whether the OMB/singer is using a T5 or a PSR3000 or a PA80 or an Audya (no matter how 'Awesome' or whether or not it's been upgraded with AJsonic ), to accompany themselves, assuming the same level of playing ability on each. Don't believe me? See how many OMB/Arranger players do an instrumental set or, in most cases, even ONE instrumental during an entire gig. The exception, of course, being Ian, the lone Arranger player in all of North America who plays all-instrumental Arranger gigs.

This isn't a knock on Arrangers, just a sober look at the the emphasis we place on possibly the wrong part of a OMB performance (and possibly at great cost). Of couse, what I'm saying here only pertains to 'professionals'. Amateurs and home players don't need to justify anything.

We all love players like Marco Parisi (sp) but how many 'Marco's do we have here. But guys like that are MUSICIANS and sound equally impressive on a workstation (or piano, or synth, or organ). What we're wow'ed by is not the arranger but their playing.

From what I've seen and heard here, the NH gigs are not very musically demanding and could be easily accomplished with the most basic and/or prior-generation Arranger KB's. The art seems to be in the 'entertainment' portion of the performances, ala singing and audience participation. That's probably as it should be for that type of venue.

So, Pro's, you may want to think twice before shelling out 5k for that new 'latest/greatest'.

chas

Sounds like an arranger player slam to me, but anyway & dont see the sense of this post....Most of us OMB have played with bands for many many years previously,......I myself 25+ years,..... in todays world you gotta do what you gotta do simple as that to survive and make a living nothing wrong with that, running a band is a big task & headaches beyond enjoyment, in today's world, .......there's plenty of pie for everyone.

VIVA ARRANGERS!!

Its easier to get gigs as an OMB?

In many areas it is... an OMB sometimes makes half the money a five man band has to split on a gig..

I don't see this as a slam on arrangers at all. All Chas is saying is that it is the live performance that matters more to the audience than the equipment being used. Sure it is nice to have the latest and greatest but it really doesn't matter much to the audience. A great performer will still put on a good show with outdated gear. This is the same whether it is an OMB with an older model arranger or a band where the guitar player uses a budget Squier guitar. It is all about the performance.

I think it was the title that may have misled some. It should probaby have been Chas's alternate "OR, why it makes little difference what type of Arranger you play (professionally)" but that became obvious when reading it.

Thanks, Nigel. Everyone naturally expects me to back almost anything Chas says. And I do, because, from politics to religion to music to human rights, we're sort of "joined at the hip".

But here, he's right! I'm mostly using a 1993 MS-60 on my arranger gigs, and don't get any complaints. That's because I need a good lead sound, a good bass line and the rest is up to me.

Chas is simply trying to analyze a pretty interesting part of what we (some of us) do for a living, or at least, part of a living.

There's an old guy in Louisville who uses a drum machine and plays an M-1, with an old 145.

Blows me away on my newer, better gear.

It's what's between the ears and how efficiently and diligently you can transfer that message to your hands and coax it out of that speaker that makes the difference.

And when that happens, regardless of the equipment, "It's a BEAUTIFUL Thing, man!"


Russ

I fully agree ... this was the first year since 2000 that I played my usual Christmas gigs without my technics kn6000 ... I got plenty of compliments, but not one person asked if I had a new keyboard ...

And for the record, chas, depending upon the venue, - restaurant, dinner party, etc. I often play instrumentals for most of the first set - bossas, light swing, etc. from the "Real Book", and will often mix in an instrumental during the night ... I am NOT a jazz player, but I do play some 'jazz' tunes ...

It's pretty obvious by your response that you've missed the whole gist of the post, which has nothing to do with anything in your response. Maybe you want to do a re-read. As far as 'the sense of this post', I could point to about 500 of yours and ask the same question. In any case, the gist of it is, 'can a PROFESSIONAL OMB ARRANGER PLAYER REALLY JUSTIFY CONSTANTLY UPGRADING TOTL ARR. KB'S every time a new model comes out? ie. does it enhance his performance enough to significantly boost his bottom line? Just looking for opinions (based on your experience), that's all. No need to trot out your 'why are you so angry' line, Donny.

chas

Good points. And I totally agree about the value of the vocals and the fact that just about any arranger from the past 12 years would work. But I actually do a few instrumentals every night and they are generally well received.
Most popular, bar none, is Last Date.
I have done a lot of instrumental Christmas songs.
Others I do from time to time are Watermelon Man, San Antonio Rose (Floyd Kramer version}, Sleepwalk, Honky-Tonk, Take Five, Unchained Melody (sax lead), In The Mood, Chattanooga Choo-Choo, Green Onions, Tequila, Sentimental Journey, Yakity Sax, Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White, Theme from Dr. Zhivago, Raunchy, Wonderland By Night, Just A Closer Walk, When the Saints medley, Night Train, Rebel Rouser, Wipeout! Red River Rock, The Happy Organ, Never On Sunday, Malaquena. I know I'm forgetting some, but I'm really old.
Also Air Force song, Anchors Aweigh, Caissons, Marine's Hymn, for military occasions.
Several college songs such as Boomer Sooner, Tiger Rag, Rocky Top, depending on what team is in town.
By the way, do you know what is the one most requested song of all time for me? Happy Birthday. I do it 3 to 8 times per night. Lots of people come for special occasions.
Interesting thread, Chas!

Oh by the way, I was lying about doing Take Five and Malaquena. Can't do either of them justice for sure.

I bought my Tyros4 mainly for ME. I played arranger gigs mostly using PSR-3000/S900/S910 and I doubt if that many in the audience would know the difference...maybe another keyboard player?

But, I like the way the T4 sounds, the feel of the keys, the flexibility of the style assembly, so when I saw the opportunity to get one just before retiring, I took it.

After many years of various bar bands and show groups, I decided to go solo, and I played instrumental gigs at a high end restaurant for nearly 12 years....every weekend, except for the few I took off to do Yamaha work. I also played New Years as well at the same place.

My first attempt at arranger gigs was using a Yamaha CLP-300 digital piano, with a small PSS-680 sat on top that I used for drums and some accompaniment, but I mostly played left hand bass.

Even earlier, I had used a special model Electone C-605 for awhile...it was "portable" only in that it came apart, but it was still very heavy.

Today's arrangers are such a treat.

The longest run any one else had there before me, and, two were arranger players, was three weekends. I also got many other gigs because of the exposure at the restaurant.

When I chose to stop playing, the owner told me I was missed, and that many had asked about me, so that made me feel pretty good. I still make CDs for people that used to be regulars.

I worked really hard at my music, and it paid off. Being able to read music very well, really helped me, as I had a huge repertoire of tunes of all genres, from Country to Jazz and Swing. I tried to make my arrangements musically interesting, but I also realized that my music was basically "background" so I also worked hard at keeping my volumes at a decent level, and to also stay away from using instrument sounds that were too harsh or raw sounding.

The owners did not want vocals, as it interfered with people talking during their meals.

I also made sure I knew the favorite tunes of the regulars. If I didn't know a requested tune, I made sure I had it by the next gig.

Like DonM, I believe my most requested tune was Last Date, and closely followed in popularity by A Whiter Shade Of Pale and As Time Goes By.

I'm sure if I was a vocalist (or I used one) it would have probably got me more outside work, but I was happy in my little niche until I was forced to leave to look after a sick relative.

Between those steady gigs, and my work with Yamaha, I did pretty good financially, and I know I made far more money on my two gig nights than most sidemen in bands were getting per weekend.

My use of the arranger enhanced my Yamaha work, and a lot of my demo tunes were also useful at the restaurant.

The arranger was just another musical tool that I managed to use successfully...nothing more.

I still enjoy playing my Tyros4 every day, and I have a few plans in the works for next year, that will involve using the Tyros4.

I still do jam sessions a few times a month with some buddies and play in a band-like situation, but it's only for our own personal enjoyment.

I also like being retired...but that's a different topic.

Ian

First of all, I applaud both Don and Tony for including instrumentals in their set lists. Obviously, both of you have the necessary playing skills to do that. I was thinking more of the average NH gig, which, as far as I can ascertain, is mostly vocal with accompaniment. Both of you play a lot of CC's and Bar/Restaurant type gigs, and all-vocal sets would start to wear thin no matter how good you were.

My reason for posting this was a reaction to the mad excitement and rush to upgrade every time a new model arrives on the scene. And yes, my post was exclusively directed at 'Pro's' as they are usually the ones that need to justify such a move financially. I personally own four (4) arrangers and other than to piss off my wife, can't justify any of them. But then again, I'm not a OMB; don't have the skill set, so couldn't even if I wanted to. Anyhoo......

chas